Urahara Shouten Party

by rasvu

Kisuke Urahara decides to throw a party. He invites the regulars as well as two new female shinigami patrol squad members. Drama occurs, drunken cards are played and people get their feelings confused. Tons of humor and plain old banters between characters. Includes over 10 characters. Rated M because sexy times.

The night was still young when a squad of slightly tipsy Shinigami burst into Urahara's store which was brightly lit even from outside. The lights danced crazily over the asphalt parking in front of the building, giving off a disco vibe. The area was basically quite loud due to the fact it was the night of summer fireworks festival and most of the citizens of Karakura went outside and to the river to enjoy the loud and fun event, leaving the main town empty. At that point a slightly shifty Shinigami party wasn't a big deal, since everyone would get drunk that night sooner or later and not remember a thing, anyway.

"Oh, hello, come in, come in," the all-green clad silhouette appeared at the door, gesturing at the guests to step inside, himself wearing a slightly amused and mischievous smile on his face. Kisuke Urahara reached to scratch his short stubble and giggled at the noise, closing the door. "How were the fireworks, then?"

The group of Shinigami that burst inside were quite a bunch: starting from the tallest and loudest was Renji Abarai, the vice-captain of the sixth Squad; then followed Madarame Ikkaku, the bald 3rd seat to Kenpachi Zaraki, who leaned against Renji's frame laughing in a retarded manner. Clinging to the men was Rangiku Matsumoto, wearing a sheer, baby pink yukata that one could classify more as a night robe - she had her hair up in a messy ponytail with a flower attached to the strands. She and the two men held bottles of beer.

Another pair went to messily sit down at one of the cluttered tables. Snow-white mane and a neat brown bun - Toushirou Hitsugaya and Momo Hinamori sat across each other and the boy began pouring his companion some plum wine that Kisuke set for all. The man shifted his eyes to gather the rest within his sight: Yoruichi occupied her favourite spot by the entrance where she spread her whole body on the futon and was devouring another bowl of spiced pork stew; there was also a group of three that laughed heartedly right next to where Toushirou and Momo sat: orange hair, tall, Ichigo; cute face and kind eyes, Orihime and the guy tallest of all inside the shop – Chad.

Ever since the kids have come of age not too long before as they turned for their last year at the high school Kisuke had been casually thinking of throwing a party in his place to celebrate them being already legal and the fact he could now freely talk about whatever odd came to his mind without having to worry about anyone being underage. And so it happened, an opportunity came as the fireworks festival began the day earlier and he invited whoever wanted to be there and prepared the place. Well, Tessai and Ururu did most of the dirty work, he only took care of the drinks and Yoruichi volunteered to make the food. Their usual barbecue device stood in the backyard and a pleasant smell of roasted meat and vegetables filled the air and the shop hall. The hall itself was just the regular shop shelves stacked by the walls and a few low tables and cushions spread across the floor. The cash desk at the back of the room was turned into a temporary counter on top of which stood many bottles and some snacks. At times Kisuke wondered when did he become so enthusiastic about having a bunch of drunks inside his property, but he only laughed the thought away and leaned against the door for a short moment, letting his eyes gather the rest yet unnoticed.

"Surprised, Kisuke?" a female voice sounded from beside him and Kisuke let out a chuckle, not turning his eyes away from the last four people he had to recognise. The two men he was very much familiar with, although he never had too many chances to interact with them personally: blonde one was Izuru Kira, the third Squad's vice-captain and the black-head - Shuuhei Hisagi, the nineth Squad's vice-captain and the head journalist of the Soul Society newspaper. Both wore casual real world clothes, that being plain pants and light shirts. The present Shinigami all did indeed keep together as a tight group, but that was for their best. He wasn't sure about one more member to that group, a funky-trendy guy wearing colourful feathers attached to his hair and eyelashes, but he shrugged that one off, since he wasn't even present.

"What about, dear Yoruichi?" Kisuke finally responded, watching the two women that stood beside the previously noticed men. Yoruichi was to her feet, leaning in her usual manner against Kisuke's side, placing her arm on the man's shoulder in a friendly way. To most, Yoruichi and Kisuke's relationship had a romantic tension to it but no one really knew for sure whether the two were sleeping together or not, yet everyone liked to suppose so.

"Ah, you know, we didn't get enough pork to feed this herd and the alcohol will run short soon," the woman grinned at how crowded the main shop hall was but Kisuke only responded with another chuckle, putting his arm around his companion's waist for a moment.

"See to that, Yoruichi-san?" was his polite response and the two eyed each other for a moment before Yoruichi nodded with a mischeviously enthusiastic smile as she walked off towards the backyard. Kisuke watched her go for a few seconds before he finally looked the desired direction. And his sight met one of the women's, having him freeze for a fraction of a second before he put his regular, goofy expression back on and waved towards the whole group. "Welcome, welcome, Izuru-san, Shuuhei-san, Junko-san, Suzume-san."

The latter of the mentioned women seemed to excuse the group and began walking towards him, to the front door. She was dressed in regular dark shorts and a white tank top enhancing her charming curves; her fair wavy hair fell down her spine as she moved towards him . Kisuke scratched the back of his neck and kept his hand up, waving at the woman yet again as she approached. How much time has passed since the new patrolling squad had appeared in Karakura...?

"Thank you for inviting us, too, Urahara-san," Suzume raised her glass that was filled to the top with plum wine, then spoke and her voice was higher than usual; her general womanly and intriguing demeanor only added to the pleasant feeling of being around her. Kisuke waved away the gratitude and looked into the woman's green eyes with interest. Suzume Muromiya came to Karakura town just when another threat appeared after Aizen's defeat – seventeen or so months after the battle was over. She was the first of the Shinigami society to enter the real world after the incident as a part of patrolling squad and during the time that she secured the streets alone for two or three months she would drop by the shop every now and then, exchanging some gossip and getting really comfortable around the place. Surprisingly, Yoruichi instantly took to her, almost always calling her the "Soi Fon girly substitute" to which Suzume chuckled and the two would spend a lot of time together. Kisuke liked her enough to let her around the building when he was running the shop downstairs. In fact, he developed a very tight friendly bond with Suzume and felt she brought a lot of freshness to their relatively lazy days in the real world. "No, really, it's an exciting thing, so different from what we used to have at the Soul Society, but I'm sure you remember it yourself, too." Kisuke chuckled yet again at the woman's words.

"Did you enjoy the fireworks, then, Suzume-san?"

"I did! We all did. It's a pity you were not there with us, Urahara-san."

"I've had plenty of chance to see it before. In fact, I'm glad I stayed here. Yoruichi is out in the

backyard about to serve another portion of pork just in case you were looking for her, Suzume-san," Kisuke smiled at the woman and she returned it herself and looked at the man for a longer moment, as if wanting to tell him something, but in the last moment she turned and started walking towards the backyard where Yoruichi was. He watched the girl; Suzume looked as if she was in her middle twenties, her general appearance was very womanly but not intimidating the way Rangiku's was. Without any further thought, Kisuke finally joined his guests.

"Urahara-san!" the above mentioned woman called out to him and he had no other option but to comply and join the dancing trio who decided the lack of background music was too annoying and so they pulled out an old stereo that the man kept out of the general view; the device seemed to be still working, though, and some heavy r'n'b notes filled the room with rhythm so intense it soaked the insides with vibration, keeping in balance with the slowly changing disco lights that suddenly became more aggressive. Kisuke was pulled into a bear hug and afterwards had Renji's arm around his shoulders, his own face facing Rangiku's and Ikkaku's.

"My, my, haven't I told you to call me by my first name tonight?" He allowed the trio to move him around according to the rhythm. The music was slowly creeping into everyone's bodies and even Kisuke could feel a very tiny need to get in touch with the beat – something he wasn't all that familiar with, and at that moment he thought he really should have.

"Right, Kisuke!" Renji took a huge sip from his bottle, at the same time almost crashing the man's head that he kept in the crook of that same arm. "Oi, sorry! Grab yourself a bottle, too, Kisuke."

He narrowed his eyes and searched the room through a jungle of arms that wildly began to move in all directions around him as Renji kept his hold on him. For a moment Kisuke thought he spotted a pair of eyes watching him very closely from the distance, but he focused his attention elsewhere – Ichigo, laughing in a friendly manner, was pulling Orihime towards them dancing, of which the girl was embarrassed at first but soon the two joined the four of them and the dance became more than just a bunch of drunks trying to catch up to the rhythm. Kisuke felt hot, for the night itself was unmercifully humid even though it was close to the end of summer, and he reached to wipe the drops of sweat from his forehead as he let himself get dragged along. He felt younger, he felt energized and began to briefly wonder if the age difference was really a thing anymore for the Soul Society standards. Soon enough, though, a hand literally pulled the thoughts from inside his head, grabbing his favourite hat and tossing it up into air. Kisuke's head shot up – the hat fell right down on his face and then slid in between the dancing bodies, then to the floor and disappeared. The man chuckled and closed his eyes for a second.

Another two that joined the circle were Izuru and Momo, who had done her best to at least have Toushirou stand up, but the guy kept refusing to the point Momo decided to go without him, but before she did enter the dancing circle, she had brought his sitting friend a different kind of alcohol for which Toushirou thanked briefly and watched the girl walk away with Izuru who initiated the whole thing. Toushirou felt he should have gone along but this type of parties, or parties in general, were not that much of his thing. He felt a twitch inside him because he cared for Momo enough to fear she would end up the bad way at the end of the party. Someone could use her...

"No! Stop it, idiot," he murmured, setting the glass forcefully on the table, drawing Chad's attention and soon the taller one approached the shorter one, sitting down across him in Momo's previous seat.

"What's the matter?" Chad asked with his low and serious voice, trying to overcome the loud music of the background. Toushirou looked at him with a bit of uncertainty and leaned in, feeling his head dizzy just a tiny bit, yet he pointed his finger at Chad.

"But that stays between the two of us," he spoke equally seriously and Chad nodded, allowing the captain to continue. Well, Toushirou did not look so intimidating without his haori; he was wearing some knee-long shorts and a regular T-shirt with some kind of a print across it that took away some of the seriousness he usually kept around him. "I don't want Momo to get involved with anyone here, and Kira just took her to dance. You get it?"

Chad slowly looked towards the middle of the hall where the eight people danced and soon turned back to face the boy across him. He smiled softly with a bit of amusement. "Toushirou-san, I think you should just join them and have fun yourself."

"You're the one to speak," Toushirou pouted slightly, eyeing the guy in front of him and he folded his arms in front of his chest. "Why don't you go yourself?"

"My date isn't dancing," Chad tilted his head slightly to the side, revealing two people standing and talking behind him. The pair was Shuuhei and Junko, and they seemed to be having an interesting conversation for none of them noticed two pairs of eyes observing them intensely.

"Right," Toushirou furrowed his brow slightly. "Now that I think about it, I don't recognise that woman. Your date, right? Doesn't look like you came together. And her name?"

Junko Fujigawara joined Suzume after the said three months of the latter's lonely duty in Karakura. She was appointed the assistant, but soon her skills began to almost match those of her mentor in the real world and soon Suzume herself asked to higher her comrade's rank to regular security. Junko was a lean woman of average height – slightly shorter than both Suzume and Yoruichi and looking as if she was in her twenties, just as her patrolling partner, and she had an easy-going aura about her demeanor.

"Junko-san, would you like to join them?" Shuuhei, who stood with his back against the wall beside the woman, turned his black-haired head her direction and asked, letting his head tilt to one side slightly, his eyes still a bit serious even though both of them have already had at least two glasses of plum wine. Himself Shuuhei did not look very eager to dance. "Or should I get us another drink?"

"I think I'll pass on the former, Shuuhei-san," Junko spoke and chuckled, raising her hands above her head to stretch and briefly looked around the room without taking sharp notice of anything or anyone around her. "But I'd appreciate if you brought us something. I'm fine with wine again," she said and then touched Shuuhei's shoulder lightly to which the man twitched briefly and answered with an uncertain, stiff smile. Junko's eyes followed his dark hair for a short moment and after a moment she finally realised Chad was looking directly at her and what doubled the piercing power of the stare was another pair of eyes, slightly colder, from someone opposite of Chad. The woman's eyes shifted to see Shuuhei only approaching the counter then, and she soon walked up to the low table Toushirou and Chad were sitting at.

"What's the matter Chad, captain Hitsugaya?" she asked in a friendly manner and leaned back, supporting herself with her arms behind her. Toushirou's look intensified and he seemed to finally have realised.

"Ah, so you're the newest security member in Karakura. Right, the report was in my office, too," the boy relaxed a bit and so did Chad. "Junko Fujigawara of the nineth division, right?"

"Yes, captain Hitsugaya," the woman nodded and the two eyed each other for a moment before four glasses were set right between them on the table with a loud clank and a person joined them, sitting down right next to Toushirou and opposite Junko. "Oh, Shuuhei, that was quite quick. Would you mind pouring for us?"

Chad's eyes shifted from the black-haired woman to the black-haired man that has just joined them. Himself he never held any sort of anger or annoyance and he barely got the hints from people not because he was dumb, but simply because he chose not to allow them to alter his chosen point of view. Chad only wanted peace in his life and getting to know Junko he was sure he found something to cling to for the first time. Sure, she was older than him, but the way they would regularly chat on his way back home from school when Junko was free from Suzume who would go to Urahara's shop as usually, made the man think that somehow it didn't matter for any of them. He was even ready to receive breaking news on Junko's real age and her own opinion on their relation, but before a talk like this would occur, he decided to invite the woman over to Ichigo's party in person. He supposed Kisuke would have invited Suzume, but not Junko, with whom he barely talked. Now, seeing his newly-made friend chat with a fellow Shinigami from her own division that she probably haven't seen for a long time, Chad noticed how he was a mistake by her side. He valued her company, but only then it struck his slightly tipsy mind that things were different than he imagined them to be.

"There you go, captain Hitsugaya," Shuuhei distributed the last glass to the boy on his left and finally took a long sip from his own glass, half-emptying it.

"Chad, wouldn't you like to join them?" Junko poked the dark-skinned man on her right and gestured towards the dancing circle with her head. She noticed a slight change in his attitude after she approached the low table and she frowned internally, understanding the situation yet not being able to speak about it due to the general commotion, so she put on the happy and relaxed face, acting as if it was no big deal. "I could even go with you," she added warm-heartedly.

"I think I'll go and see how the food is doing. I'm quite hungry. I will join you guys later," Chad responded and to almost everyone's – except for Toushirou who was now watching Momo dance with Izuru – surprise he emptied the glass in one sip an stood up to walk towards the second section of the shop, the more private one, and then through the wooden door leading outisde into the backyard. The air was insanely humid and the smoke from the barbeque device was merging with the exploding lights of fireworks in the sky. The music from both inside and outside and the river area was there accompanying the sizzling of the meats and vegetables. Suzume and Yoruichi were fanning themselves, sitting on the grass of the merely three square meters of the tiny garden, shielded from other gardens by a high steel net fence and some wooden stillages.

"Chad," Yoruichi brought his attention with her regular slightly cheeky voice. "Worrying about the food?"

"I thought I would join you, Yoruichi-san, Suzume-san," he responded in a slightly quiet voice, settling himself close to where the two women were sitting as he just let himself drop flat on the ground and focus on the sky above him, putting one hand below his head. "I just downed a whole glass," he chuckled.

"Well, guess that will pull you out of the game for some time," Suzume spread herself over the grass the way the man did and they both only chuckled once more before turning silent, leaving Yoruichi complaining to herself as she got up to check on the barbecue. Apparently half of it was well-done and soon the woman entered the shop building with her arms full of plates full of many different kinds of meats with sauces and other spices that she had prepared beforehand. Yoruichi did enjoy doing something herself once in a while, as in some house work or actual cooking. What she didn't like, though, was serving people. That's why she stopped right as she entered the interior.

"Madarame! Abarai! Care for the curry chicken wings? Then get your asses over here," her voice was able to reach the precise people if she wanted to. Even though the music was still on and the rest seemed to be having great fun without noticing, Renji and Ikkaku got out to be the ones carrying the plates then into the main shop section – Yoruichi following them with confidence, her black short outfit only adding to the general royal aura.

"Ooh, food, good lord! Excuse me, excuse me," an exaggerated sigh overcame the music and Kisuke finally stepped out of the dancing circle even though Rangiku was insisting very hard on him staying there with them, especially then that Orihime and Ichigo seemed to be getting closer to each other with every song and needed some security trap around them as they danced in the middle. The man put on his goofy smile again even though his heart was racing and the sweat fully covered his forehead, the sides of his head and the visible part of his torso as if it had rained upon him. He wanted to continue but quite honestly he became so hungry he merely dropped down next to a dark-haired male Shinigami and pulled out a clean white cloth from inside his pocket to then gently wipe the sweat away.

"Urahara-san, you look like you haven't danced in centuries," Shuuhei raised his glass Kisuke's way and emptied it quickly, chuckling as did the woman sitting opposite them both.

"Yes, I think that might actually be the case," Kisuke pulled out his fan and put the cloth away, then started fanning himself slowly, steadily gaining composure and stability as his heart beat calmed down. He finally looked to the woman and kept his eyes on her for a longer moment as she grabbed a piece of grilled meat with chopsticks – she still maintained to hold them at that point – and popped it into her mouth, beginning to chew. He watched her two loose braids fall to her sides as she ate. A fringe fell upon her forehead.

"Junko-san," he started as Shuuhei busied himself with food. At the sound of her name being called by Kisuke, Junko stopped chewing for a brief moment, but then simply continued.

"Hmm?" she asked with her mouth still filled with food. "Whassit, Urahara-san?"

"Oh, it's nothing. You dirtied your cheek with sauce," Kisuke reached out to point the place where the brownish spot on Junko's cheek was but she simply reached for the cloth that the man discarded a few moments earlier and wiped it away. Kisuke found himself surprised but laughed shortly and withdrew his hand. "Much better."

Junko indeed was already tipsy enough to say or do things she might not really want to on a daily basis in regular circumstances. Wiping one's own cheek with a sweaty cloth was probably one of these thing. But somehow she was not as disgusted as she would have thought; the cloth was only damp and not smelly.

"I always wondered what all you guys did here when Suzume visited you, Urahara-san," Junko finally swallowed and spoke. In the background the music changed to something less aggressive and the slow rhythm helped most of the dancing guests slowly relax and soon the remaining two tables were full. The only dancers that remained in the middle of the room were Orihime and Ichigo who finally allowed themselves the gesture they have secretly wanted for a long time: the girl was embracing the guy's neck while resting her face buried in his chest and Ichigo held his hands around Orihime's waist tightly, both moving along the slow beat.

"I would lie if I told you it was nothing special," Kisuke grabbed his own chopsticks and had himself a few snacks.

"I would figure," Shuuhei finally spoke, having only listened to the two up to that moment. "Suzume is really refreshing. People like her give you new ideas and inspire to do many things. She is the brightest among the non-seats right now, that's why they gave her the permission to patrol Karakura," he continued, while Junko finished her portion and leaned back yet again, putting on a friendly, relaxed smile.

"True, Shuuhei-san," she responded. "It's always fun to work with her. She always comes up with creative ways to get rid of those boring hollows. These days all we get are the regulars, maybe some fusions once in a while and more drastic instances even more rarely. I guess together we are too good for tragedy," Junko chuckled and looked around the hall. In the far corner of the room sat Toushirou with Momo; right after Chad had left his seat, the captain decided to follow in his footsteps and he approached the girl who had been dancing a bit awkwardly with Izuru. Soon the two of them moved away from the dancefloor and Izuru joined the original squad, being pulled into the circle by Rangiku. "Anyway, afternoons I always spent with Chad or Orihime and Suzume went to your place."

"Oh, I did," a pleasant female voice sounded behind Junko and the said woman sat by her partner's right side opposite of Kisuke and Shuuhei. Suzume instantly reached for a snack. She smelled of barbecue smoke and grass and seemed to be more tipsy than the moment she left to join Yoruichi outside.

"Yes, great," Junko chuckled and stood up to get another glass for the woman but Kisuke got to his feet in the same moment and looked at her with a slight demand, which almost forced to stay in place and sit back down. "Where were you so long? Don't tell me you've been grilling meat by yourself the whole time."

"I was outside with Yoruichi-san and then Chad joined us. Did you tell him something sad or upsetting, Junko?" Suzume chewed on the snack and eyed her friend. Junko felt just slightly uneasy thinking about how Chad must have been right then, probably sitting out there by himself thinking. She was back to her good mood soon, though.

"No...?" She shook her head and emptied another shot of ginger liquor.

"Chad seemed to be in a very sad thought. Don't tell me you guys were dating for real?" Suzume put her palm over her left breast in a theatrical way and chuckled.

At those words both Junko and Shuuhei looked at each other and both of them tried to withhold a laugh – and succeeded. As for Junko it would not be a mean laugh, but more of a "I-can't-believe-this" type, utterly surprised with the idea that Chad might have taken their friendship to another level inside his head. Of course, he did invite her over to the party and Junko wondered whether or not she would even be there if it wasn't for him – at that point Kisuke came back to the table with a glass and more alcohol, and returned the look to her – but to think that everyone was probably taking them both for a legit pair... Interesting.

"No, I'm definitely not dating Chad," Junko said with determination and a little bit too loudly as she was leaning back, yet again supporting herself on her arms behind her.

"I figured as much, thanks," a male voice sounded behind her and for a mere moment the woman froze, turning completely sober, but the next she was still tipsy as she turned to Chad who has just approached their table. Her light grey eyes locked for a moment with Chad's hazel ones but soon the man just turned and walked away to the table Ikkaku and Ranji were sitting at and he joined the two who immediately made him play the drunk cards with them over ginger shots. Junko sighed and began to get to her feet to at least apologise to Chad for hurting his feelings and not having settled that earlier, but yet again she was stopped by Kisuke's demanding look. Shuuhei grabbed the sleeve of her black T-shirt that she wore with high-waisted light jean shorts, pulling her down completely.

"I'll take care of that, Junko-san."

"No, I really have to apologise to Chad myself. He must be feeling terrible now," Junko slid her hand across her face in an exhausted manner and sighed, but the smile was still playing on her lips.

"Now that the breaking news is out there and our bellies are full," Suzume finished her portion of food and set the bowl aside, reaching for the booze and smiling, "maybe we-"

"-could play a game?" Yoruichi joined their table making it a bit too crowded, but she settled at Kisuke's side her usual way and pulled out a deck of unusually looking cards from inside her black shorts' pocket.

"Yoruichi-san, reading my mind as always," Suzume sat up straight with grace even though her moves were slightly too slow even for a tipsy person. Junko chuckled, supporting the woman. When she made sure that Suzume was sitting securely, she moved closer to Shuuhei to make a bit more space for the cards and whatever they would be needing during the game. The man took the newly brought bottle and poured them both another shot – this time it was blue and smelled of an unidentified mix of tropical fruit. At the other side of the table Yoruichi made herself more comfortable, wrapping her arm loosely around Kisuke's and began distributing the cards for everyone. Kisuke poured himself and Suzume a full glass of wine and began to sip at it, watching the scene unfold.

"Cheers, Junko-san," Shuuhei raised his shot glass towards Junko to which the woman wrapped her forearm around his and both of them emptied their shots at once, the way they would in a group back then in Soul Society during parties.

"Alright, how about we quit toasts and play," Yoruichi interrupted and was about to introduce the rules when a shadow was cast upon the table and soon another pair, that is Izuru and Rangiku – who was definitely on the drunken side - joined the small table, making it even more crowded but cosy and fun at the same time. There were seven of them, sitting in a circle around a square low table cluttered with glasses of all sizes and shapes, and no one even paid attention anymore whose glass they were drinking from.

"Each of you should have five cards," Yoruichi raised her cards up in an energetic manner and grinned at others. Everyone responded with a loud "yeah". Kisuke only briefly looked at his cards and then at the woman that Yoruichi separated him from – Suzume. She was sitting next to Rangiku and both of them were laughing at a quick drunken joke that the redhead told in the meantime. Kisuke observed her for a moment before turning to someone else.

Suzume was having a lot of fun, to the point that she never wanted to return to her duties again, only to remain partying in that specific place, Urahara's shop, the place she associated relax with, the place she found some valuable bonds in and the place she could return to anytime. She grew attached to the way how in the afternoons they would sit together with Kisuke and drink tea, and eat four or five servings of dessert while talking about various world issues, both the real and the spiritual. Suzume also grew attached to Yoruichi who immediately took to her without giving her a hard time or mocking that she did with Junko the first time Junko stepped through the Senkaimon and appeared inside the shop one evening. Suzume remembered how the woman called her friend "little tomboyish assistant" and asked her to help with something around the house right away – something she hadn't asked of Suzume in her first month. Sure, afterwards she was given requests and other minor errands, but she could see the difference in the way Yoruichi treated her and Junko. It's not that the woman disliked the other, Suzume realised, but more likely that Yoruichi felt threatened in some way? Anyway it was too weird to ponder on and understand anymore after countless glasses of weak plum wine.

Suzume caught Kisuke's sight and smiled at him happily, showing her small teeth, and the man returned the smile to her, goofy yet having something more to it.

"The first card should have the name of the person you are in a pair with! The cards are special so don't worry that you are stuck with the current choice. The partner changes with every round so you won't miss anyone," Yoruichi grinned again and kept the cards up. "Now pair with that person!"

The general chaos occurred as the six adults began moving around on their knees clumsily like retarded or very sleepy children would and within twenty seconds the pairs were set, except for Yoruichi who started the game. Apparently if the number of players (outside of the one in charge) would be odd, the remaining person had the privilege to choose their next pair – but that was not the case. In the background the music switched to a more intense beat, as if tuning in according to the type of event occurring. Ichigo and Orihime were spotted leaving the hall towards the backyard, maybe to get some air, or maybe to finally kiss and snuggle the way they should have months before. They could be sure none of the Shinigami, nor Kisuke - nor Yoruichi - would go out there to grill meat. Or to check on them. Chad, Renji and Ikkaku were getting hazardous, putting the money on the table. The money was probably fake, but it did not matter to the drunks. Occasionally Ikkaku would burst out with a yell while Renji laughed him off slightly madly, and Chad could be heard chuckling once in a while.

And so the three pairs were set. Rangiku got Junko, Suzume got Shuuhei and Izuru was paired with Kisuke. Even though the number of women and men was equal, somehow things were meant to get complicated and even more intense from the beginning. Suzume smiled at Shuuhei and then looked at Kisuke who gave Izuru shivers by telling him something no one heard except for the two of them. A giggle followed from the older man and suddenly he returned the look to the woman which made her freeze in her movement for a fraction of a second after which she grinned.

"Ooh, Junko-chan," Rangiku put her arms around Junko's slightly flat chest and pouted, not finding enough to get excited about. "Well, you don't have boobs as big as I do, but they could do, I guess," she giggled like a small girl and Junko let the woman cling to her as she herself held both their cards.

"The second card says who is in charge. Green means it's you, red means it's your partner," Yoruichi silenced the general commotion and everyone looked to their mini deck very quickly. For Kisuke and Izuru, Izuru was in charge; between Shuuhei and Suzume it was Suzume and then it was Rangiku for the remaining pair. Everyone was completely surprised, well, except for Rangiku herself who was extremely excited about whatever it was she would be able to do. "The third car is a place. We will start with our regular guy and girl thing, so come on Suzume, read your third card."

Suzume smiled and raised the card in front of her eyes.

"We have the kitchen," she chuckled and showed the card around.

"The next is the place on your partner's body," Yoruichi gave the biggest grin and straightened up, resting her hands on both her hips.

"Uhm," Suzume pulled another card but before she could read it with her dizzy eyes, Rangiku burst between her and the card and just read it for her. "Ooh! Belly!"

Even though Shuuhei was already quite drunk and at such times he still remained quite silent, this time even he chuckled, too, and felt his abdomen twitch at the very thought of whatever would happen; unless it was a hit, he would be happy with basically anything at that point. He jokingly reached to unbutton his gray shirt with rolled up sleeves.

"The last card is, obviously, an action. But mind you, it can be anything."

Junko reached for the wine bottle but before she could grab it with her hand, it was snatched right from under her nose. The woman followed the hand that took it and as she looked up, her slightly dizzy eyes were met with Kisuke's amused ones as the man began pouring a glass for himself and Izuru, and then he put it back close to him so Junko had no way of getting it from the point she was seated in. The woman stared at the man in confusion and reached out nevertheless, slowly making it for the bottle across the table, sticking out all her curves for everyone to see. She was clumsy, though, and suddenly her hand slipped on the wet surface, and she hit her elbow with a force that made her exclaim with pain – elbows are always the worst place to hit. Junko was saved from hitting her head, too, by Shuuhei – with his shirt already unbuttoned – who he the woman back in place. No one seemed to notice how deliberately Kisuke acted and Junko decided to shrug it off – he must have really been drunk.

"Thanks, Shuuhei," Junko smiled at the man and then looked at Suzume, who was about to say what the last card held.

"Not a problem, Junko-san," the man responded but before he could add anything else, Suzume covered his mouth in a friendly, funny matter and leaned in close to him.

"Leave a trace of kisses," the woman said and suddenly everyone just burst out with something to say, but since it was only a drunk ramble, Yoruichi clapped her hands clumsily and raised her finger.

"Mind you, you have to be creative because I'm the judge here."

Before anyone had anything else to say or add, all seven people moved to the kitchen which was slightly claustrophobic and too small to hold so many people doing odd things at once, but somehow each player managed to squeeze in. Izuru was squeezed against Rangiku's impressive breasts and Kisuke took hold of Junko's shoulders as she was pushed against his frame. Kisuke was almost a head taller than her and she could feel the strands of his blonde hair brushing against her forehead and temples. She could also feel his pulse, which was a very weird experience to get while not being very conscious. The music got even more intense as Suzume and Shuuhei approached a cupboard. Shuuhei was ordered to sit on top and take off his shirt and discard it. Suzume put her long hair in a temporary bun and waited until her partner was all settled, and as soon as Shuuhei was, she hovered over his stomach and slowly began to work her way down with multiple light kissed per second, and the lower she went, the more passionate the kisses were. Suzume found Shuuhei's scarred skin arousing and she was gradually slowing down, her lips leaving long and hot, smooth kisses just above the hem of his pants.

Shuuhei did his best not to make any sound. He was clutching at the edge of the cupboard when Suzume reached the center of his stomach right above his belly button. He felt the pressure in his abdomen building and he was sure the buldge between his thighs was already visible to everyone present in the kitchen. He tried for his dear life to hold back any sort of sound, but when Yoruichi ordered him to say anything, Shuuhei let out a long deep moan he's been holding back and began to softly pant as Suzume's lips reached the bottom of his stomach. His head shot back a bit and he covered his face with one hand, letting out another softer and deeper moan as the woman finally pulled away.

"Man, and now you keep me hanging," Shuuhei jumped down to the floor and adjusted his black jeans that became too tight around the crotch area to comfortably walk around anymore. He thought he missed his Shinigami outfit for a brief moment – he could instantly get aroused and no one would ever notice. "I suppose there's nothing to be done about that."

"We still have the next round, Shuuhei," Yoruichi led the whole party out of the kitchen back to the table. Rangiku had Izuru wrap his arm around her waist which she fancied a lot and the two followed Yoruichi, Suzume, and Shuuhei who went to get a bit of rest from all the arousal. Suzume felt something waking inside her that she hasn't felt in a long time, at least not since she made love to someone back in Soul Society. She realised she lacked of relief to that extend.

Junko felt as if she got glued to Kisuke's torso and when they finally had to pull away, she furrowed her brow at the odd chill that cooled her back which managed to get sweaty all around from constantly being in touch with another body in a room full of tension. God, has she not been drunk, she would have probably settled for watching only. The one time she was with a man, of her own division on top of that, it was such a disaster that Junko swore she would never have sex again. At least not until someone reasonable showed up. She idly looked at Kisuke who wore his goofy smile again and she chuckled, following the rest to the room.

"Next we go with Kisuke and Izuru and I'm so curious," Yoruichi grinned and spoke. "Come on, boys, you know the rules."

Izuru looked at Kisuke who was sitting at his side casually and he pulled his cards. His eyes shot open, big as regular meal plates even though he was one of the drunkest of the group.

"Uhm... the floor...? Can be here, I guess-"

"Yea, go ahead."

"Fingers...?!"

It was visible how everyone waited in a slight tension to know what was to be done to Kisuke's fingers: both Rangiku and Junko were leaning in, curious, and Shuuhei had his brow raised almost nonchalantly as he fought the disobedient guest between his legs with the power of his drunken will. Suzume was still chuckling, feeling that if the next round brought Kisuke to her, she probably wouldn't hesitate to go even further; from the evening that Junko came to the real world, Suzume realised that what she had previously felt for the shopkeeper was friendship only – however from that one evening her feelings changed to the point she found herself dropping by the shop just to check if Junko per chance wasn't there getting Kisuke's attention. She did catch herself being overly attached and that's why she tried to act as natural as it was humanely possible for her, but Suzume was slowly beginning to explode. The way Kisuke looked at her during the party, the way she caught him staring with more than mere friendly interest, and the way he sent her his signals... She couldn't just stand there doing nothing. But at the same time she had to be sure. She had to have evidence.

"Lick."

A laughter big enough to wake the dead filled the room, granting the group a muffled yell from Toushirou who was still talking with Momo as they sat together on some comfortable cushions. The group didn't pay attention to that one voice, but instead the five curious adults circled the two man, one of them was laying on his back, basically spread across the wooden floor in a comfortable position, and that one was Kisuke. The other held his slender hand in his own pale one and was making slow attempt at the task assigned to him. Izuru took it as a task – what else could that be for him? Well, surely that was a game they played to get into the proper mood, but he was all about women, and there, he had to lick another man's fingers in a way to please one of the most shameless people he knew were alive – Yoruichi. Izuru sighed and finally brought Kisuke's hand to his mouth. It smelled of plum wine, for Kisuke has just before refilled his glass with the alcohol and he must have spilled it over his palm

His tongue left his parted lips and brushed along Kisuke's middle finger, tracing gently yet with determination to the very tip of it. He then closed his lips around it and slowly pulled away, leaving it moist; Izuru had his eyes almost closed and saw that the man beneath him kept his mouth parted, letting out an occasional sigh. Izuru furrowed his brows and decided he had to do better. He moved towards the smaller fingers, this time letting his tongue start from the middle of Kisuke's palm, going up and around the finger, licking the same spot continuously as if he imagined would be done to a woman. He nibbled on the tip of the ring finger for a second and put both ring and middle finger into his mouth, letting his own tongue sensually brush against it in many directions. He began sucking at the two fingers, finally gaining a deep raspy sound from Kisuke and he saw the man do exactly what Shuuhei back there did: he was covering part of his face and had his eyes shut tightly. Izuru didn't give up on his actions, but he moved to the index finger, this time taking it in a more gentle way. Soon enough, though, the man beneath him uttered another awkwardly sexual sound and Izuru pulled away, letting go of the other's hand. His eyes briefly looked over to his and Kisuke's sensitive spots and they both were hard. He couldn't really scoop it up, but he thanked whatever gods he could for being drunk right then.

"You surely got me in the mood, Izuru-san," Kisuke chuckled and withdrew his hand, moving it to adjust his clothes the way Shuuhei did, and he sat up casually, looking around. His eyes rested upon Suzume who seemed to be quite glad with the outcome herself and he grinned at her in his usual manner, clumsily straightening his back. Izuru was actually chuckling under his breath.

"Yeah, good job you two," both Rangiku and Yoruichi said at once and everyone laughed, along with the pair, and soon everyone took their place back around the table. It was time for Junko and Rangiku to perform whatever the cards told them to perform. Junko felt excitement mixing with a bit of stress Her mind was a mix of images and sounds, and her limbs felt exceptionally light. She quickly reached for a ginger shot that Shuuhei poured her and they both drank it their regular way, wrapping their arms together and drinking past each other's shoulder. "Next we have Rangiku and the little tomboyish assistant. Now that's a pair I'm not worried about," Yoruichi spoke and Junko felt a shadow creeping across her own face as soon as she heard what the woman called her again.

From the very first day she labeled Junko a tomboy and that only added to her weird feeling about herself – especially after the poor sexual experience with a sixth seat not that long before. She shrugged it off again and looked her direction and then at Kisuke who had his eyes on Suzume. Junko only smiled. She has had suspicions from the very moment she arrived at the Urahara shop and saw the way the two of them just clicked together, the way they talked and looked at each other. Maybe Suzume could finally stop just hunting for his attention and just get it directly instead. Such was that pair. And some people, like her, would probably not get to that point very soon, but Junko was fine with that. At least there was Shuuhei, a familiar face to drink and joke around with.

"Alright, I wanna read my card, so quiet!" Rangiku raised her finger in a drunk manner and began reading her cards. With each word her surprised smile was growing bigger to finally turn into a lustful grin, the one only she was able to pull perfectly. At that sight Junko discarded all of her current thoughts and giggled nervously, something very unlikely of her to do, and she tried to peek, but the only card Rangiku allowed her to see said "Massage."

"Rangiku, come on, don't be so skimpy," Suzume complained and leaned over towards the golden blonde who immediately hid away the contents of the remaining cards.

"No, you all follow me," she said with a giggle and stood up, wrapping a hand around Junko's waist to then drag her along. Halfway to the entrance to the other part of the house, she stopped and turned to the group following her. Only Kisuke looked as though he had an idea. "Oi, Kisuke, you have to take me to your bedroom," Rangiku gestured at the man and he brushed some of the hair away from his face and went for the front of the group, leading them up the stairs and to one of the many rooms that were situated opposite each other alongside a dimly lit corridor. As soon as he opened the door, a pleasant view unrolled before the group's eyes: the bedroom was neat with a double futon spread in the corner, and a big window made them stop to watch the fireworks for a few seconds. The rest of the room was a desk with a cushion and a couple of devices all of them were curious to touch but none had the drunken courage to.

"How nice, and it will get nicer," Shuuhei stuck his hand into the pockets of his pants that got looser ever since Izuru and Kisuke acted together – he busied himself with pouring some alcohol for everyone. He couldn't possibly allow himself to get aroused by two men together, no. Yet, he knew he would. Sexual tension isn't something he would be able to stop anyway. So he found himself a legitimate excuse to skip the show.

"You bet," Rangiku answered and pushed Junko on to the double futon gently, but the woman fell down with a muffled thud anyway. She was spread across the bed sheets like a ragdoll, curious and dizzy, waiting for Rangiku to act and get in charge.

When a hand reached for the hem of her shorts, Junko raised her brow and looked around at others' faces: Kisuke sat together with Shuuhei and Suzume on one side while Izuru and Yoruichi occupied most of the other side of the futon. They were all mildly aroused. The beat caused the floor to rhythmically quake from the amount of bass and the distant explosion sounds only made it less bearable to wait for Rangiku to do her part. Finally, her hand grabbed the hem of Junko's T-shirt and quickly pulled it up, revealing the woman's small yet shapely breasts neatly packed in a regular black bra with a ribbon sewn in the middle.

"Hehe, it's "massage breasts in Kisuke's bed", darling," Rangiku chimed, giggling like a ten year old as she pulled the T-shirt over Junko's head. The woman gasped in surprise but chuckled, letting her body loosen up a bit more. After all it couldn't get worse than an aggressive muscular guy forcing himself on her without consideration. And Rangiku's hands were warm, thankfully. "Although it's probably Kisuke who should be doing that, it's his bed after all."

Junko laughed at the notice as she remained wearing only her bra, which Rangiku was working on impatiently. It wouldn't be the first time she would show her naked breasts to someone, let alone people she was relatively familiar with. There was a whole different story with her soft spot, though. But breasts...? It was not that much of a deal.

"Rangiku, hurry up or I'll start giving you minus points," Yoruichi faked a pout that instantly turned into a grin but before she could reach to help the blonde undo the clasp beneath Junko's body, someone's hand was faster and the bra came undone, still loosely resting over the breasts. Shuuhei withdrew his hand and folded both in front of his chest.

"What? It was getting hopeless there."

Rangiku laughed. Junko looked over to the man and grinned, showing her teeth and she relaxed, keeping her hands resting beneath her head and her legs messily spread out. Finally the other woman pulled the bra away. An arousing chill swept across her bare skin, causing her nipples to harden and a twitch to occur somewhere at the base of her stomach. Rangiku chuckled almost seductively and traced her soft womanly fingers up Junko's stomach and up to her breasts, leaving her skin covered in goosebumps. Junko shivered and sighed, and the sound escaping her mouth motivated Rangiku to move on, and the blonde finally cupped both of her breasts with her palms and began to knead so skillfully that Junko unconsciously brought her knees together, beginning to feel hot between her thighs. She let out a raspy low moan and was the third person to cover her face with one hand. Rangiku kept on massaging for a few more seconds before her hands were pulled away and Junko's chest covered with her own T-shirt.

"Okay, Rangiku, I think that's enough. Shuuhei is already over the edge," Yoruichi, grinning, wrapped her arm around the blonde's frame and made her look at the poor man, who, indeed, was clutching at his zipper area, trying to overcome the waves of heat that struck his body again and again.

"I'm out, guys, this is turning into a porn party, and I can't even get that tension out," Shuuhei furrowed his brows as soon as Junko put on her blouse without even caring for the bra that laid discarded in the further part of the room. "Have fun, I'll have a round with the guys downstairs."

With that speaking, Shuuhei struggled to get to his feet and he walked out of the room, leaving both Junko and Rangiku looking disappointed and concerned at the door – but they had different reasons. Rangiku wanted to have fun and was still surfing on the waves of alcohol, but Junko knew the man too well and realised his aroused penis was not the problem there. She managed to shake it off, though, and turned to Suzume.

"We had your partner run away, I guess we are the winners," she laughed a slightly forced laugh and grinned towards the woman, herself getting to her feet as did the rest. Kisuke was straightening the bed sheets with an odd smile on his lips and Izuru was helping him around. Yoruichi and Rangiku decided it was a definite victory of the all-girls' squad and they went downstairs to celebrate their triumph. In the room remained Junko, Izuru, Suzume and Kisuke. Junko knew precisely what Suzume would like to happen now. And since her only close companion, Shuuhei, left after defeat, she had nothing else to do around that place. She stretched her arms and grabbed Izuru by his fancy light-coloured paisley shirt that he tucked into blue pants. Suzume was already asking Kisuke about something only the two of them could hear and she chuckled to herself.

"What's so funny?" Izuru turned to look over his shoulder, the direction Junko was facing, but she quickly dragged him out of the room and he had to comply, for the performance took away some of his strength. A shameful thing, he thought, but he guessed he had to accept that. At least he realised he could get aroused by both men and women. Hell, what is wrong with that analysis, Izuru, get a grip, get a drink and relax, the man laughed internally. That hellish game was over.

"Nothing, it's just... I guess they get their opportunity now," Junko said while closing the door to Kisuke's bedroom behind them both but instead of going downstairs the way Izuru did after excusing her, Junko just sat down by the wall somewhere away so as not to hear the sounds of sex, and she let her head fall back against the wall behind her, a slight smile playing on her lips. She was already quite exhausted and her head was spinning. At that point she knew walking down the stairs by herself might have her injured. And who was she kidding? Of course she began to experience pitfalls of the alcohol now and felt a bit mopey, wishing someone would just come there and let her feel like a woman for once. How long before someone reasonable would show up? Months? Years? As long as she was stuck in Karakura no one, literally no one was there to help make her wish come true.

"Junko-san."

"What?"

"You're here because of her."

He was smiling. Suzume was standing across Kisuke, only the neatly folded futon separating them. She was dizzy and wore a wide smile on her lips. One of the straps of her tank top was threatening to fall down her shoulders. Her quite curvy, womanly frame stood there with determination now that Izuru and Junko were gone, leaving the two of them alone. She wouldn't make the first move, she would wait for Kisuke to approach her – something she was somewhat sure would happen if they were given the right circumstances.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she responded truthfully, or as truthfully as her state allowed her to speak.

"It's fine, you don't have to notice everything happening around you. But from now on try to look at things from many angles. Your tomboyish assistant helped all this happen-"

"Please, don't call her that, she hates it."

"I know, Suzume-san, it was only a warm joke. Junko-san is far more than a mere assistant," Kisuke slowly began to close the distance between them as he stepped over the futon and held his hand out to grab the woman's forearm gently.

He walked up the stairs with mixed feelings. She was supposed to be still there according to what Izuru told him as he sat together with them at the table. Shuuhei Hisagi was a man of action, he wasn't all that easily bothered by issues, or even if he was, he developed a special defensive system to push the thoughts away. His only weakness was being intimidated. Intimidated in a private, intimate way, and intimacy was something that he never paid attention to up until a few months prior when Junko Fujigawara joined his division. At first he would merely pass her in the streets, and as the vice-captain he did not have the obligation to remember all the names of the new soldiers. It wasn't different with Junko: she was a regular, she even looked like a regular, but the attitude she held towards life was what impressed him. She was not overly joyous, neither was she too serious. Relaxed, easy-going. It seemed she had the right amount of everything in her. And soon enough he would be researching her with the help of the twelveth division that he kept in close touch with. Nothing special – just a soul of a woman who was forced to choose between the life of her own and her family. She chose her family which was after all murdered, too. She never saw them again in the spiritual world and didn't remember a hint from her past. She seemed to be fine with the way it turned out.

He reached the first floor at last. Through dazed eyes he noticed a silhouette sitting, leaning against the wall. Shuuhei recognised the hair colour and general demeanor and slowly approached the woman, making sure not to make too much noise.

"Shuuhei-san?"

At the sound of his name he stopped for a brief moment before fully approaching Junko, and he stopped in front of her. He knelt, grabbing her hands and pulling them towards his mouth as he pressed them together.

"I recognised you such a long time ago... I've wanted to be close to you ever since. I want to make love to you now, so don't turn me down," he spoke seriously against Junko's clasped palms, at the same time looking her deeply into her gray eyes. Shuuhei knew an information like that – while drunk – must have sounded ridiculous or offensive, but he always spoke the truth if he had to speak at all.

"I'd like that," came the response from Junko. She was startled, but expressed relief. "You're my closest friend, as close as I let anyone approach me. It was terrible to have left Soul Society for my duty here. But you're here now and you want the same thing as I do... I want it, Shuuhei."

He immediately helped Junko up and the two of them burst into the nearest room. It was dark inside. Shuuhei pinned her to the wall with the weight of his body. His lips clashed with hers and he kissed her like it was the last breath he would take in his life. She gave in to his touch and returned all the kisses with equal passion. His hands moved steadily and lovingly, but even more lustfully up and down her sides, touching her breasts and hips, and soon they wandered inside the top to play tenderly with her naked upper body. Her hands began to roam over his bare torso, scratching him gently, touching whatever she could get from his body. So she has never been all alone, after all.

"Hah... Shuu... hei..." the overwhelming feeling of the man pounding deep into her sent unknown sensations down her spine as she was clutching at his neck for dear life, occasionally kissing the side of it in a haste. "Ahh..." Her shorts and panties along with Shuuhei's pants laid discarded at their side on the bare wooden floor as their almost fully naked bodies rocked against one another in a rushed motion; Shuuhei was on top of Junko, keeping his arms as tightly around her body as possible as if shielding her from the outside world, which Junko found softly annoying, yet she wrapped herself around him just as tightly and allowed him to move inside her as fast as he wanted. Shuuhei was slowly reaching his climax and he was moaning deepy into Junko's ear. She responded with exactly the same sound. He was thrusting into her so fast she knew that soon the lust, the excitement and most of the intensity would be gone. She moaned particularly sexually when Shuuhei hit a sensitive spot. At that sound he immediately exploded – he then waited for the tension to decrease so he could safely leave her, although that was the last thing he wanted to do. The despair and lust, the longing and passion, all that he kept bottled inside before he made love to Junko, all was gone now leaving Shuuhei with mild disappointment.

"Junko..." he started, still on top of the woman, stroking her hair without much thought to it. Junko could feel the pain caused by her back being constantly slammed against hard, rough wooden floor; she was sure she had bruises along her spine. "I..."

"Shuuhei, let's forget that this ever happened."

Junko looked up and was faced with unease painting all over the man's face. She could feel his muscles tightening and tensing in place. His heart began pounding even faster.

"I... Why...?"

"Because you aren't sure if you still want me the same way... You are afraid of hurting me, just the way it was with that stupid game. You didn't leave because you couldn't get relief. You left because you feared I might be uncomfortable because of your presence during the act with Rangiku. Shuuhei..."

The man kept his eyes on Junko's face. His expression didn't change.

"I guess loving you isn't enough?"

The woman shook her head; she completely misunderstood the man. Of course – he would still be there even though his intense feelings vanished, because he was loyal and truthful. And he fought hard for what he wanted badly. But Junko wondered...

"Is it enough for you, though, Shuuhei-san?" Apparently that question resonated within the man. Shuuhei remained quiet; was he – or would he ever be – able to connect with someone out of pure love? Why was it hard right then? He made love to the woman he thought he loved, and who he thought fancied him. Or maybe it was not about him at all?

"It is," he responded firmly. "Is it enough for you, Junko-san?"

Junko dropped her sight to see Shuuhei was still inside her, still throbbing and still stroking her hair idly, taking a close look at her face. It felt oddly difficult to answer that one question. Everything suddenly began to distract her: the floor still quaking from the insane bass of the music being played downstairs, the rough wooden panels beneath her, the fact someone might open the door and see them just laying there. The worst case scenario would be Urahara or one of the kids, Ururu or Jinta, but anyone would be as uncomfortable as that-

"Well, well, if it isn't Junko-san and Shuuhei-san," a familiar melodic voice sounded when the door to their hideout room opened wide, casting full lantern light over the floor, still a bit too far from them to have them lit. It all happened within a fraction of a second: Shuuhei pulled away from her and dressed himself so quickly Junko didn't even manage to blink, and he almost made it with dressing her, but what he left out was the woman's T-shirt which left the girl exposing her breasts. She quickly covered them with her hand and that's when Kisuke's light reached them. Through the blinding beam Junko could see a goofy smile flashing at them both. "I'm glad I found you two. I've been searching everywhere! Well, it seems that, Shuuhei-san, you couldn't resist pestering Junko-san about the game that you lost? I think you should cool your head outside, it works wonders."

"Sorry," Junko has already managed to get fully dressed and got to her feet as soon as Shuuhei did and started to follow him, but Kisuke stopped her at the door, waiting until the other man was downstairs and away before he spoke. And when he did, it was a different voice; it was concerned and cloudy.

"You tried so many times to throw Suzume-san into my arms. Why? Have you considered that I might already be involved with someone?" Kisuke was as serious as Junko has ever known or seen him. He was leaning against the door frame, looking right at the woman whose dark hair still remained braided at her sides, although a lot messier than previously.

"So many times?" the woman looked up with confusion. "What are you talking about? I only helped her once, today, because I knew she would want that... Otherwise, I've never helped her with these matters. True, we became friends, but not close ones. She spent her leisure time with you and Yoruichi while I was talking to the kids, walking them home and just relaxing out there. We met for fighting hollows, not to chat, especially not about you, Urahara-san."

Kisuke was not responding for a moment, he just sank into thoughts and let Junko walk past him, but as soon as she took three steps, he turned to face her.

"Junko-san. So you say you were not the one who asked Suzume to investigate my laboratory because you were too embarrassed to come there yourself?"

"Of course not. I'm not interested in your laboratory. To be honest I didn't know you had one in the first place," she responded, looking down at her bare feet. Junko couldn't understand the situation. The alcohol effects were slowly wearing off but she still felt dizzy enough to collapse at any moment.

"I see. So you also weren't the one who asked Suzume-san to get me into telling whether or not I was romantically involved with Yoruichi-san."

"Hell n-"

"I figured as much. Then I've made the right choice," Kisuke trailed off, looking away. "If you consider Suzume-san your friend, find some time to tend to her. She's in my bedroom. I think you need mutual support."

Junko stopped in her idle movements and looked at the man before her seriously, discarding whatever relax and ease she might have been taking pride in as her traits. Her sight sharpened a little more and she eyed the man with concern.

"What did you do to her?" Her heart began to race and the unease crept over her whole body – Kisuke Urahara was a man whose actions one couldn't foresee. Apparently, he had two sides to him, switching them as he pleased and in that short moment Junko doubted his good will.

"Oh, nothing! Nothing, Junko-san. I think it's just something similar to what just happened between you and poor Shuuhei-san," Kisuke leaned back against the door frame and gestured towards the woman to move on. "Suzume-san is heartbroken."

The woman stood there for a moment before turning around to get to Suzume's room. She had absolutely no idea how the things progressed to such a point. Was it because they had all been drunk, or were those real feelings and the alcohol only helped them surface and take over their characters? Junko walked away from the man and finally entered the place where Suzume sat, weeping. At the sound of the door opening, she yelled.

"I told you not to enter! Get out, Kisuke! How could I have been so stupid?!"

Junko quietly knelt beside her friend and embraced her, letting her weep until there were no more tears to drop from her pretty eyes. She felt partially responsible for the way the events turned – she should have stopped Suzume from getting closer to Kisuke Urahara. After all, Suzume was younger than him, she was roughly the same age as Rangiku or Shuuhei. Only slightly younger than Junko was. Age didn't matter in the Soul Society. It was only the character that did. What about the current circumstances, though?

"Junko... why? I thought... I thought he would accept me..."

Junko furrowed her brows. Accept her? Kisuke could love her, not just merely accept her. Was is really all that Suzume needed from the man she was attached to so strongly? Or maybe there was something more to that? There was a disturbing feeling of the unknown, something concealed that Junko had no access to due to the fact she had never been that much of a welcome guest inside Urahara's shop. She would merely shrug it off and continue with what was given to her, whether it was taking walks back home with Chad and Orihime or slaying hollows of average class. What was that man hiding away from her that he didn't from her partner Shinigami?

"Suzume, did he try to use you in any way?" she finally asked, not able to form a more adequate question to match her galloping thoughts. It seemed that the question evoked something hurtful inside Suzume, so Junko tightened her embrace.

"What are you talking about?! I was trying... to get him to use my body in an... an experiment in his laboratory. But... but..." Suzume trailed off, leaving Junko's heart pounding with stress. "But he refused. Just now. I tried to get so close to him to make him trust me, I was ready to put my own life into his hands... I'm Suzume Muromiya of the twelveth division, Junko! I was bright enough to get here, but serving him as an exhibit was my only purpose in the real world! And he refuses to use me, use the help and research materials I'm providing! It's so shameful... It's..."

"Shh..." the woman tightened the embrace even more and finally understood the whole situation. The only question that lingered in her head was why would Kisuke turn down an offer like that, but otherwise her opinion on him changed drastically. Junko stroked Suzume's fair hair and she helped her friend down, on the futon. She covered her with a blanket. Herself, Junko sat at the edge of the futon and sank into thoughts, allowing her mind to cool down.

She wondered how Shuuhei felt. If only he was able to take their mutual love-like feeling and base it all on it from then on, Junko was ready to stay by his side – when she returned to Soul Society that is. Yes, that would be the right amount of time, until she would be fully back without any future perspectives of going back to Karakura. She would put it all on Shuuhei; Junko wanted him to be the stronger link, just the way he was when he approached her straight away and told her he wanted to make love to her. She was attracted to his physicality, his demeanor, and to his values and personality. He was a silent loner agent who worked hard to get what he wanted. She, on the other hand, needed company – not just a man who would drop by to talk for a few minutes, no. Someone she could share herself with and get equal amount as the reponse. It was up to Shuuhei Hisagi, anyway.

The weeping and sobbing ceased and instead the room was filled with a sound of steady breathing of Suzume. Junko slowly rose to her feet and began walking towards the door. She left the room and closed the door behind her carefully.

"So now you know," sounded in the corridor and the woman slowly turned to face Kisuke again. This time he was closer, allowing her to actually see his face in full detail. He still lacked of the hat someone had snatched away from him and his fair hair was shaggier than before.

"Yeah. And it's all done. We will have to put Suzume back in the Soul Society, unless you kill her and take her corpse to investigate, Urahara-san."

"There will be no need. Besides, who knows when the evil might be back or when I myself might be back, Junko-san," Kisuke reached out to brush away the strand of hair that got into Junko's eye. "But what I know is that you will stay here by yourself for the time being as the patrolling squad and Suzume-san will not be able to return here after you or the rest of guys downstairs take her back. I'm sorry, it will be hard for a while but I think you can get used to-"

"Don't give me that nonsense, Urahara-san."

"I did ask you to call me by my first name Junko-san."

The woman looked up to find she was standing too closely to Kisuke. The corridor was dimly lit as the two of them stood somewhat away from the staircase in silence, neither making any sort of move. Junko wondered why the things turned the way they did, from a light-hearted party to an intense drama that engulfed or at least impacted almost everyone; or was the drama an inseparable part of every party? But she has just had sex with Shuuhei who apparently had to re-think some issues after hitting on her so directly (and so did Junko) but somehow it hurt her a lot to realise that as soon as they all wake up in the morning, most of the guests will have to leave for the next couple of months if not forever while she would be serving her time here. She thought about Shuuhei and Suzume mostly. To think she only wanted to attend the party for a few glasses of wine and some kicks.

"That doesn't change the fact that we have led stuff to an odd point," Junko sighed after looking away from the man's face. The dizzyness was slightly better and the woman could think at least a bit more clearly. "And why are you lollygagging around here, anyway, Kisuke-san? Suzume is asleep and you probably should be downstairs. Well, I should be there, too. After all the night is still young," Junko rested one hand on her hip and turned away, heading towards the staircase. She heard the sound of footsteps following her.

"You're right, Junko-san, the world isn't ending," was it a fake goofy smile that Kisuke has just put on? Or was he out of his seriousness again, and back to the usual awkwardly friendly side? She couldn't tell, but it did help lighten up her mood; the situation became too intense for her liking and Junko stretched her arms above her head, finally reaching the ground floor. The music was still on and apparently the hazardous guys, that is Renji, Ikkaku and Chad, not excluding Izuru, decided to join Ichigo and Orihime who were back to the main hall and dancing again. The general lights were even dimmer and the disco-like flashes intensified, turning the dancing space into a more intimate place. Shuuhei was nowhere to be seen and so were Rangiku and Yoruichi, so the three must have gone outside for some air, food or talk. Yes, she could hear the blonde's womanly laugh. Junko chuckled to herself and decided to join the dancing circle; she did want to earlier when she noticed that even Kisuke was there, but all she did was observe while talking to Shuuhei. She wished they could dance together, but after what happened the less interaction between them, the better... Or?

A grab of her hand that pulled her towards the center of the hall was aggressive enough to have the woman burst into the circle. She looked up to see who pulled her towards the dancers. She did expect Kisuke for they walked down the stair together, but who appeared before her wasn't who she expected at all – it was Shuuhei. He put his arms on both sides of her waist and smiled at her, something she wanted to see ever since they parted. Junko returned the widest smile she possibly could manage and only then noticed the silhouette behind her partner, watching them for a moment before a goofy, yet an odd smile reappeared on the person's lips and Junko realised Kisuke was intensely watching them both for a brief moment. Her eyes caught his but she merely chuckled, thinking he might have been the one who actually made this happen, although that was just a funny way Junko imagined events. She felt energised having Shuuhei just leading her and soon the woman was fully relaxed and generally in a much better mood; she was jumping up and down along the rhythm while Shuuhei danced behind her. Turning to face him she put her arms around his neck, and Shuuhei kissed her briefly on the lips, acting spontaneously enough the be out called out of character.

They danced in a group for at least half an hour before the song changed to a slower one – Junko spotted Izuru playing around with the player. He soon joined them, grabbing Rangiku who appeared out of nowhere by her waist and had her bury her head in his chest. Rangiku let out a soft chuckle and let the man lead her as they began their slow dance in an embrace. Junko parted with Shuuhei and they looked at each other for a moment but before any of them could act, Renji approached them in his regular, dynamic matter and leaned in between them.

"I'll be taking you," he spontaneously wrapped his arm around Junko's shoulders and the woman chuckled, allowing the man to take her with him. It was the first time she would actually get into any sort of interaction with the vice-captain of the sixth division – previously she would only pass him in the streets and they would exchange their courtesies and go their own ways, but apparently he was keen on getting around her just as mildly as she was. Shuuhei only waved them away and casually went to sit at the table alongside Chad and Toushirou and Momo who occupied the space closest to the counter. Yoruichi was spotted going up the stairs and Junko thought she must have gone there to check up on Suzume.

"That's nice of you," Junko responded to Renji as she put her hands on his shoulders while the man casually and loosely wrapped his own around her frame. Renji was well-built, his shoulders were broader than Shuuhei's or Kisuke's, he was also slightly taller than the afore mentioned two and Junko felt as though she shrunk a good couple of centimeters. "I haven't had a chance to talk to you, vice-captain Abarai."

"The hell you're being so formal for," his cheeky expression amused Junko to the point she burst with a short laugh right in his face, but Renji was too drunk to take it as an insult, neither was it meant as one. "Yeah, you were not even a seat so that was rather normal I didn't care. I mean, no offense, we just have more important stuff than that," he laughed the poor commentary off and the woman shook her head shortly, thanking mentally for having her spirits uplifted so easily.

"Yeah, right, I figured as much," Junko rested her cheek on the man's shoulder and observed the room in a daze; this time Kisuke was nowhere to be seen as well as Ikkaku, or so she thought, but soon enough a small commotion took place around the counter and the woman spotted a bald head emerging from behind it, and then two more people emerged afterwards, carrying the Shinigami's body towards the staircase – Kisuke and Chad were the two most sober it would seem, as they carefully steered the unconscious body up probably to one of the rooms on the first floor. Junko chuckled.

"Hisagi used to talk about you a lot, though," Renji continued, pulling the woman closer in a casual manner, having them both slowly circling their spot. The man had a white tank top and a pair of regular gray pants on, and his muscles protruded through the soft material. Junko could feel every of them move as Renji's whole frame did. "Said "the new recruits are average but there are a few reasonable ones, and that girl, Fujigawara, I think they might be actually sending her out soon" and he just talked and talked, but we didn't really care so we all forgot that was the case. I guess we should have at least remembered the name." He chuckled.

"Then remember me for the next few months because I won't be coming home until they decide otherwise," Junko said, wondering just how long it would take for the people in charge or any of the captains to actually appoint another Shinigami to assist her in her patrolling, but she wouldn't be able to check back in the Soul Society. "The blonde girl, Suzume, is going back to Soul Society for good and I will be staying here by myself. You can drop by, though."

"We'll throw a party when you're back," Renji said and the song was over, having the pair pull away from one another; the man patted Junko on one of her shoulders in a friendly manner and walked away, and so did the woman, directing her steps towards the counter to make herself a refreshing drink, something to wash away the feelings and just put her in a new, energized mood again. Junko didn't really want the night to be over.

Kisuke was walking down the stairs, adjusting his forest-green shirt inside his black trousers – he had to give himself a bit of time and refreshment, so he decided to take a quick and cold shower right after Ikkaku couldn't hold his last liquor and vomited all over him to the point the man didn't even bother to clean up, he just rushed to the bathroom, discarded his standard green robes and jumped in the cabin. Chad was the one who offered to help with the nasty spill. He owed that boy and would pay him back later. After he finished washing away the un-pleasantries of the previous hours, Kisuke dressed in whatever clean clothes there were close at hand. His shirt was slightly crumpled but the trousers looked neat at least. His damp hair stuck to his forehead but at least he was clean and his mind was clearer.

What surprised him about the previous issue was that he knew exactly what Shuuhei and Junko did and why they paired up so quickly, and yet as soon as he entered the room, none of them stayed by the other's side – no, instead the man got up and left (yes, it was after Kisuke suggested that, but he did not expect it to happen so quickly and easily) and the woman followed for her own business, but there was the tension he could feel between them. And they did not even complain that he ruined – slightly deliberately, yes – their love-making.

He was in deep thought when he finally reached the ground floor where the slow song was playing from the old stereo and the only people dancing were Izuru with Rangiku, Ichigo with Orihime - those two really did seize the opportunity, Kisuke thought – and surprisingly Renji with Toushirou's date, Momo. He was moving around her in a playful, friendly manner, and instead of embracing her he just made her twirl and took her very carefully. Shuuhei and Toushirou were sitting at one table observing them and taking ginger shots together, chatting and still keeping an eye on the funky pair on the dance floor. Kisuke put his regular awkwardly goofy smile on and entered the main hall of the shop, spotting the woman to his right behind the counter, preparing a drink for herself. Junko was mixing some regular liquors with ice and some juice he had no idea how she found in the place.

"The next time something magically disappears from my house you will be the one to blame," he said light-heartedly, stopping beside the woman and grabbing the juice box, idly looking at it for a moment before putting it back down. He saw Junko turn to him quickly. "That was only a joke, Junko-san. Feel free to-"

"Not what I mean, Urahara-san," he heard her rather happy response and that put him in a slightly surprised position, but he quickly recollected and leaned against the edge of the counter, watching the drink being finished. "You changed your clothes?"

"Oh, yes," Kisuke responded, scratching the back of his head and briefly eyeing his shirt that begged for an iron. "Ikkaku-san forced me to with the colourful decoration he spilled over my robes upstairs. Chad is tending to him now, he should be back quite soon."

"Tell me," Junko raised her glass and gave it to the man to which his trademark smile widened. Kisuke accepted the glass without any complaint and took a sip, feeling refreshed from the very smell. His thoughts focused on the woman next to him who started preparing a serving for herself. The man waited for the continuation of the request or a question she had. "What do you think of the game we played?"

The mere question had him think for a moment before responding; Kisuke's eyes wandered around the room, taking in all what was happening and the fact people were still under a relative control of their movements had him slightly grateful, because it meant they didn't have to call it the day – or night – and leave to sleep. The music changed to a fast and energetic one when Ichigo and Orihime left the small dance floor, actually walking their direction. Kisuke waved his hand at them in a welcoming manner.

"I enjoyed the excitement," he began when Ichigo approached them.

"Urahara-san," the orange-haired boy stepped close to them both while Orihime – with a cute and a thoughtful smile on her small plump lips – rushed to whatever it was she wanted to prepare for both her and Ichigo to drink and eat; there were still the barbecued meats on a few plates and Junko helped the girl get the one she couldn't reach. "We're really enjoying this party, thanks," his voice was confident and he sounded really pleased. Kisuke only chuckled, passing Orihime's drink to him. "I didn't realise I would have this much fun. I'm reserving this place for my future birthdays and you'll be in charge."

"How could I refuse?" the man nodded at the boy and both of them eyed each other for a moment before Ichigo nodded as well, a confident smile widening across his lips.

"Orihime, are you ready? I was thinking we could go outside for a sec."

"Yes, I'm coming right away!" a girly voice sounded from the back of the counter and soon the redhead walked past him and Junko, turning to look around her shoulder. "Thank you, Urahara-san!"

The music was getting pretty intense yet again, causing the whole house to throb significantly as the beat unfolded. It seemed as though everyone successfully went through the lazy and helpless phase and gained some additional power to continue having fun. Kisuke only then blessed the shower. His hair was getting drier with each minute. The humidity level remained the same inside the place and everyone was sweating massively, but no one seemed to be bothered by that fact.

"How about we sit down?" Junko lightly poked his shoulder with her own glass and he turned to her immediately, nodding. He led them to a free low table on the opposite side of the hall by the wall and he sat himself across from the woman, but before he could speak, a silhouette just popped out of thin air beside them and took the one free place between him and Junko. The purple hair swooshed in front of him and Kisuke immediately recognized Yoruichi who seemed to have finished tending to Suzume. Were the two of them talking or was Yoruichi only getting her time alone at the same time watching over her friend? She must have known what he knew – that Suzume would leave for Soul Society forever and would probably be prohibited to go down to the real world due to mission failure, and she was probably just having her last minutes with her. But it surprised him that Yoruichi decided to join him when Junko was around. Somehow his friend didn't take to the woman at all, even though she liked everyone and could have fun with just about the same amount of people; at first Kisuke thought that Yoruichi was hiding something from him, but as he reached back in his memory, he couldn't pull out a single situation where the two could have possibly met. Also Yoruichi wasn't the jealous type at all, which fuelled the man's confusion some more.

"Dear Yoruichi," he greeted the woman. "Suzume-san is...?"

"Yeah, she is asleep. I talked to her for a bit but she preferred to fall asleep, tsch, so I sat there shortly and then left her to take a walk around the area for a moment and now here I am," the woman moved closer to him and leaned towards his side, distancing herself from Junko on the other side of the table. Kisuke could see the way the younger woman relaxed, leaning back, but at the same time he couldn't help but get a vibe that Junko did find Yoruichi's attitude slightly upsetting. "Are you going out, Kisuke? What's with the outfit?"

"I had to change, Ikkaku-san left me no other choice," he scratched the back of his head and chuckled. He looked at Junko, then, who was already halfway done with her rather big drink. Then his eyes wandered to Yoruichi who suddenly set a plate of snacks on the table and pulled out chopsticks, getting to eat.

Junko was allowing herself to drift on the beat and the warmth of alcohol slowly moving down her throat. Her eyes were narrowed and her mind clear of any thoughts, that meaning not noticing the pair across from her caring for themselves only – the woman's gray eyes lazily moved around the room, occasionally catching Shuuhei's or Rangiku's but she didn't even make effort to wave at them, she merely enjoyed the moment of refreshment. So she was wrong after all. Kisuke Urahara was not interested in Suzume Muromiya; he was probably only being close and friendly with her so as not to hurt what he suspected the woman felt for him, which slightly impressed Junko. Apparently the man wasn't romantically involved with Yoruichi either, despite what the general suspicion bore. Junko thought that Kisuke of all people would be able to casually just spill the tea about being together with the woman and he would merely put the goofy smile back on.

She grew just a bit bored. The music changed again, replacing the heavy beat with something a lot more light-hearted and energetic. Junko needed to move, her feet almost itched and she reached for her glass to empty it and she set it back on the shiny surface. She finally looked over to Kisuke and Yoruichi and saw the woman clinging playfully to the man's arm and he was casually saying something in his regular pleasant tone. Standing up she merely waved them goodbye and joined the dancers again.

This time literally everyone was moving in the center of the hall, even Ichigo and Orihime seemed to have gotten enough of fresh air outside and joined the fun; Shuuhei replaced Izuru at Rangiku's side and Renji gave Momo back to Toushirou. He overcame his general grimace and was instantly pulled inside the circle by the girl and joined Chad, Ichigo, Izuru and Orihime, dancing wildly together to the delightful beat everyone seemed to enjoy a lot. Junko joined the circle, too, and glued herself to Chad's side, doing crazy moves together with him and it seemed as though the man has gotten over the disappointment Junko caused him to feel and he was able to have fun with her nevertheless; after all they did have a lot in common and back then talked a lot, and managed to develop a very close friendly bond. She also mouthed her apology his way, but Chad didn't notice. Junko was enjoying herself to the point she exclaimed in joy, to which the rest began to jump up and they all got lost in their dance.

"Oi, Kisuke," a cheeky voice made him shift his eyes to Yoruichi at his side. He has been watching the circle for a long moment now and apparently missed some of the woman's words.

"Hmm?" he answered awkwardly. "Can you repeat, please?"

"You old man, listen. I was asking if you wanted to accompany the guys as they get back to Soul Society with Suzume. What do you think?"

"I don't think it's a good idea. It's enough that Suzume-san suffered with how she tried to, you know," Kisuke furrowed his brow insignificantly and took another sip from his now half-emptied glass. Yoruichi sneered mildly and nodded her head, indicating she, indeed, knew what Kisuke was getting at, but she was not satisfied with his answer.

"Yeah, I guess. We'll have Junko girl running all the errands now. How do you feel about that?"

He took a moment to think again and his eyes shifted back to the dancing circle as the song was fading, changing to another equally energetic one. He fished the woman who was then at Chad's side, dancing in a weird way, and he sighed internally not because he did not want to answer the question, but simply because he knew Yoruichi had a reason to be asking him that.

"If she does just as good as Suzume-san did, I'm fine with that," he responded with a very open statement and emptied his glass. As much as he enjoyed having Yoruichi around and spending time with her, sometimes he lacked of someone else's company; always in his shop or the lab, or occasionally in the underground field doing many various things, Kisuke has already gotten used to working alone and he even took to it. He was not the most social person and yet over time gathered the necessary skills to go out there and adjust, if not fully then at least to the main principles of the group he would enter. He was excellent at reading others although he didn't take pride in that and approached that skill with caution, not letting the "sure and certain" thoughts influence his mind. Also, he needed some intimacy from time to time. Not a big amount of it, but an embrace or just a feeling of another body against his own could satisfy his needs for a long time. Yoruichi did indeed cling to him sometimes and he would seldom approach her himself, but their history as friends was too long to let that satisfy his mental intimacy needs, too. "Why are you asking that, Yoruichi-san?" He liked to address her politely from time to time.

"Why do you think?" the dark-skinned woman sat up, a cheeky grin still present on her lips as she set her bowl down. "You let her in tonight and there she is, pulled right into some bullshit that has been going on a few hours before. She is different than Suzume, because Suzume did all to impress you – and me by the way – and she was the help we needed. I don't imagine Junko doing all these things for us."

"Why would you say that?"

"We basically blocked her out of here as often as possible, especially you by spending time with Suzume. And she got over that from the beginning and grew used to that, so I don't believe you expect her to suddenly change because the responsibility is hers."

"You have a point, as always, dear Yoruichi. I don't think we're in the right moment to be discussing this now, though. Do we still have some food left?" Kisuke tried to smoothly steer the conversation towards something more casual. He did not want anyone to eavesdrop on it, especially not Junko herself. Yoruichi got to her feet with a cheeky chuckle and looked down at the man, shaking her head shortly before she headed outside to grill some more meats.

Kisuke sighed and smiled lightly to himself. His condition was perfect and sitting by himself at the table slowly became dull and boring, so when the song changed to something equally enjoyable, he merely stood up and headed towards the dancing circle.

"Oh, finally!" he heard someone exclaim along with his name and spotted Rangiku waving at him, urging him to make it to the scene faster. Kisuke stuck his hands inside the pockets of his pants for a moment before approaching the woman who wrapped her arm around his own, dragging him with her towards the middle. "I was about to start a bet with Izuru-kun when you finally get your ass up here," Rangiku laughed almost seductively and the man returned the amused look to her, accidentally bumping into a dancing figure.

"Urahara-san!" it was Junko's back he crashed with and Kisuke instantly put his hand over the spot he hit.

"My apologies, Junko-san," he chuckled trying to yell over the music and felt Rangiku release his arm having dragged him to where the biggest circle was. Everyone around except for them two were jumping up and down, leaving Kisuke keeping his hand still over a part of Junko's back. The jumping mass moved them around almost aggressively and soon both the man and the woman gave in to the enthusiasm, joining the rest, not paying attention to the numerous times they bumped into each other, hitting one another everywhere.

Soon the song changed yet again, this time falling upon them with a beat so heavy that some – like Orihime or Momo and Toushirou - called it a break and left the dance floor, leaving only the legitimate adults and Ichigo and Chad giving in to the rhythm. Suddenly the level of humidity in the room increased to the point the sweat covered each and every body. Some were not the greatest dancers, some had it come to them naturally, but at that time the bodies were what mattered. Shuuhei quickly approached Junko and, holding her waist, swayed her passionately from behind, at which the woman awkwardly moved closer to him and Kisuke had to pull himself away, although soon he was getting funky with Rangiku close to the pair. Junko's eyes met his a few times and the look would last longer than usually, having both of them laugh it away at the end. After a few beats, though, Rangiku had to leave him for Izuru who seemed to have been looking for his partner around for a while. The man laughed the incident away and was pulled into the circle again by Chad while Renji, who smelled of ginger shots and sweat, put his arm over his neck and refused to let him go, getting Kisuke to move with him. Chad joined on the other side. Ichigo closed their cicrle, putting his lean arms around everyone, getting them to jump in sync. It's been ages since Kisuke felt that energized and the sensation added fuel to his body, having him experience an extraordinary flow of positive vibes.

Shuuhei was drunk, she knew that, and after a few moments Junko felt him pull away from her as he placed a strong kiss on her cheek and then went away to join the jumping guys in the back. Junko's head shot back and she let out a massive sigh of relief as if trying to exhale all the tension that Shuuhei's touch built at the base of her stomach, but it didn't quite work that day. Her heart race was extraordinarily fast, her vision dizzy and blurred. The beat was thudding inside her head in the most pleasant way. Junko did not notice it at first when a pair of firm hands pulled her in and then buried in her messy hair. She was certain that Shuuhei returned to her and managed to get all worked up again, but when the woman reached for his hair and buried her fingers in it, she froze in place. The hair. Too long.

Looking up, her blurred vision met the face of Kisuke Urahara who was gazing at her warmly, keeping her firmly. Junko jumped away the second she realised that and her hands froze halfway between their faces. The song changed to a very slow one after a moment, bringing some relief to the tension of the room.

"No need to be scared like that, Junko-san," Kisuke laughed the unease away and loosened his grip on her arms. "You almost collapsed and I caught you just in time," he said with a smile. Junko remained silent for a moment before letting out a chuckle of relief, laughing at her own awkwardness. "I think you owe me one."

"Huh, yes, I think I do," the woman nodded slightly. Her arms ever so reluctantly moved up Kisuke's frame to wrap around his neck as her cheek rested below the crook of his neck. At that point Kisuke released her from his grip completely and casually let his hands rest on the woman's back. He swallowed very lightly the moment Junko's warm body clung to his own. Not a few moments prior he pondered about intimacy. He enjoyed the closeness and how he could feel the woman's heart beat through his own skin. Has he ever danced like that with anyone? There must have been at least one event. He briefly went through his memories but there was nothing to be found. Kisuke's palms stroked Junko's back very softly and he felt her twitch a little. "You're not saying anything."

At her words the man lowered his face and pressed his mouth to the crown of her head, his warm alcoholic breath brushing down her face. Junko realised – to her surprise – that she enjoyed the way he smelled after he had taken the shower; the naturally manly and slightly cosmetic scent mixed with his breath comprised of an attractive scent.

Honestly Junko would have never suspected she would get this close to Kisuke, nor did she hope she would any day during her patrolling duty in Karakura. It was always Suzume who visited the store in the afternoons or run all the necessary errands leaving Junko basically blocked out of the possibility to get to know her environment well. She had many suspicions and settled to believe one that suggested the fact Kisuke, Yoruichi and Suzume must have been working on something important before she even arrived and naturally she would not be allowed inside their trio. Junko never even nudged neither the man nor any of the women to be able to join them and instead turned to spend her afternoons either with the high school kids or discovering Karakura on her own; many an afternoon she would just sit by the riverside and watch the sunset or read a comic book – one of many that Suzume would borrow from Kisuke and then passed on to her after reading herself. It seemed that Junko was just destined to serve her duty in relative solitude. But her mood was good most of the time and she was extremely flexible - these two traits combined gave her a sort of perseverance that kept her mind at peace and her days pleasant. That was it, though, just pleasant. Kisuke's hands moved up her back.

"I was enjoying the moment," the man finally spoke. Junko could feel he was smiling against the top of her head and a very slight chill moved down her still damp back. She managed to forget about their surrounding during their two minutes together and when finally Kisuke's voice brought back a dash of reality to her, the girl pulled away a bit and looked to the side; Shuuhei was observing her alongside Renji and Toushirou who sat together at one of the low tables. "Are you alright, Junko-san?"

He could clearly see that him taking away someone's partner to share a slow intimate dance with might not have been the happiest idea. The man wished for the warm body to be back against his chest, simply because during the last few minutes he grew used to that comforting feeling and when it suddenly ended, confusion replaced content. Kisuke's eyes followed Junko's, and Shuuhei's intense stare reached him, too, even though it was directed strictly at the woman. It wasn't demanding or scolding, not even aggressive; it was merely too intense. It seemed as though the other man worked like a magnet for Junko, and even though he knew the girl was really laid-back and independent, what had happened between the two upstairs wouldn't allow neither to be completely free from the remnants of it. He suddenly felt so old, almost too old for pondering about such issues. He thought it was something he has already lived through, but on the other hand he did not have anyone that could confirm it.

"Yes," she nodded in response. "I'm alright, Kisuke."

"I suggest we go outside in a moment, Junko-san," the man smiled broadly and in a goofy manner when the girl finally addressed him the most casually she could. "You almost fainted before and I need some relatively fresh air, too. Your friend won't mind that, I think." Of course he meant the black-haired man who now started to busy himself with snacks that Yoruichi placed on their table.

"Shuuhei is my lover," Junko spoke.

At the sound of her own words the girl stopped in motion and cleared her throat, feeling her head starting to hurt a little bit. Why would she even say something that wasn't true? Yes, they made love, and yes, they kept close together almost the whole party, but... in fact they were at such a distance. Junko was already almost fine with having to wait for Shuuhei's response that would be known to her once the woman comes back home. She shook her head shortly and looked back at Kisuke who was watching her peacefully.

"Yes, so your lover won't mind that, Junko-san" he said again, replacing the wrong word with ease. Kisuke was an expert at acting peacefully regardless the situation. He knew a lot; not just mere facts but he was also able to recognize motives and other people's true mindset no matter what they spoke. "I will be waiting outside."

He withdrew his hands from Junko's back and managed to only pat her on the shoulder before turning around and heading towards the front door. A brief thought crossed his mind: was he starting to develop a close bond with Junko? What was it he felt for her and how different was that from his feelings towards Yoruichi or Suzume, or anyone else? Kisuke walked towards the door but before he left the shop, he put on his favourite hat that someone kindly placed over his clogs for him, and then he slipped the said footwear on. As he opened the door, a massive firework explosion greeted him from afar and the man finally found himself standing in front of his store.

The air was slightly less humid than before and certainly drastically less humid than the interior of the building. Kisuke briefly looked over his shoulder and then back towards the source of the fireworks station far on the horizon. It was settled on one of the hills which made it possible to be seen by every citizen. The festival night event seemed to continue and the music coming from the river areas was just as lively as it was when the party began.

The sound of the door opening pulled Kisuke out of his thoughts as he breathed in deeply and calmly.

"I'm honestly stupid and this feels suffocating," a female voice sounded to his right. "I just want to tell you about the whole thing. Can we walk to the river and back?"

The two of them looked slightly odd crossing the streets, dressed absolutely not adequately for the occasion with Kisuke having his casual shirt on along with the funny hat and clogs that made a ridiculously loud sound in contact with the asphalt streets, and Junko wearing her dirtied clothing and flip-flops.

"It was quite a surprise when Chad and not Suzume invited me to this party, but I just shrugged it off at first, blaming Suzume's amount of duties you both gave her..."

The few citizens walking back to their houses from the festival were fully-clad the traditional summer festival way, the beautifully-dressed women almost blooming, having the colourful fireworks as their background. They would look at the pair curiously and gossip mildly, merely walking past them and that was when the whispering would stop.

"...Shuuhei never gave me any sign, nothing that I could find informing or helpful. He just came upstairs and said he wanted to make love - to which I agreed. Sex was intense and good, but when we were done I didn't feel happy... and neither did he. As if we agreed that it wasn't meant to happen..."

The streets finally began to widen, leading them towards the cluttered space by the river of Karakura. The stalls of various foods and useless toys and souvenirs densely dotted the small area and people seemed to just crowd by, looking for anything they could get. Hundreds of youngsters decided to come closer to the river itself and there was basically no place to sit in peace without a threat of their conversation being eavesdropped on. Kisuke admired the view, only then regretting not having joined the group when they made a short trip back in the evening – this year was exceptionally neat and cozy with all the town decorated.

"...and then Yoruichi-san sat together with us at the table, and thank the lord I poured myself a drink, because I really dislike the way she just swooshed me away, especially when we talked together and she would happen to be around. As if she was jealous. But yes, I know, it's not like her at all..."

They finally reached their destination. Kisuke was listening to Junko's words with almost his full attention, for some part of his brain focused on finding a decent place to rest; he was already tired with the atmosphere back then at the shop and since his guests handled themselves so well, he wasn't at all concerned. Not that he would ever be.

"Kisuke-san?"

Junko's slightly more high-pitched question made him turn to fully face her. They were standing among the crowd somewhat away from the food stalls and while the man wanted to proceed, the girl stopped abruptly.

"Yes, Junko-san?"

"I want to stay here for a while."

He could see her expression well and it showed slight concern.

"That's fine. I was actually trying to find us somewhere neat to rest," the man responded and Junko nodded at him, after which they continued their stroll and the girl was back to explaining the whole issue to Kisuke from her point of view. And not five minutes later they actually sat on the cool grass, having only two or three pairs or small groups around them. But those were loud enough neither had to worry about not being able to comfortably express themselves. Kisuke sat slouching a little, his legs crossed and hands loosely resting in his lap while Junko spread her legs ahead, having previously taken her flip-flops off. She leaned back and let her head fall back a bit, her eyes focusing on the sky above them.

"...I decided to wait for his response until I would be back home. He gave his consent... drunk, but still. I wonder if I'm even doing the right thing, having us both hanging," the woman finished.

"I think it is the best you could have done."

"How can you be so sure?" Kisuke heard a slight doubt in the girl's voice but otherwise she sounded calm and relaxed; he smiled to himself and allowed his thoughts to help him put a reasonable response together.

"Yoruichi-san and I had a similar issue at one point of our friendship," the man started, taking small breaks to make sure he included all that was on his mind. At the corner of his eye he saw that Junko was observing him, so he merely shifted to face her. "It struck me now how similar, actually. I was your Shuuhei-san at that time. You would be Yoruichi-san. The only difference between you two, though, would be the fact my dear Yoruichi is more action-oriented and doesn't analyze her own behaviour too often. She gave me signals I read the wrong way. We slept together twice after escaping to the real world and it was always me who seeked her out. At that point I really thought she had changed her mindset about us and our relationship because she never refused to do the things we did-"

"So you both needed relief and intimacy, but it confused your feelings," Junko interrupted Kisuke and genuine curiosity painted over her face, letting the man know she was catching up.

"Yes, that would be it. We even had chances for a romantic relationship and gave each other time. I think both of us understood that while our natural need for affection was not going to change, our temperaments were not suited for each other to think about it more seriously, Junko-san. My only point is that giving yourself time teaches you a lot whether the person you are waiting for is worth it or not," Kisuke slowly laid down on the grass, straightening his legs as well while his hands went beneath his head.

Junko gave herself some time to think. The view sprawling before her felt relieving. A slight breeze blew a few strands of hair over her face. Her mind was a racing field and she became slightly more sober.

"Shuuhei's touch gave me the intense and lustful feelings. Yours felt confusing yet liberating," Junko said and turned a little to look at Kisuke who – as she supposed – was already looking at her in a different way, the calmly intense one. "It's difficult, do I even know the difference anymore? And waiting... I could as well ask anyone if they were interested in waiting for me to make up my mind. It's ridd-"

"I can wait," the man interrupted her calmly and his words silenced Junko for a moment. She was absolutely sure Kisuke could clearly hear her heart beating madly inside her chest. His words answered as many questions for her as it created.

"You know you could have just said that instead of giving me your story with Yoruichi-san, Kisuke-san," Junko smiled to herself while her heart tried to regain the previous steady rate.

"You could have just told me straight away you had suspicions about me, Junko-san," he said.

"I guess. Yes, I guess I could."

For a moment they remained silent; finally without any further ado the girl got to her feet, holding out both her hands Kisuke's direction to help him up as well. He let her pull him to his feet. Before there was a chance to speak, the woman's arms wrapped around Kisuke's neck in an instant and he immediately reacted by pulling her into a close embrace. As soon as her warm body clung to his own, the man felt a wave of relief wash over him – he regretted having parted with her before in the first place. He felt her lips pressing with effort to his ear and smiled with delight.

"Thank you, Kisuke," was spoken into his ear in a happy manner. "I regret I have not had the opportunity to visit the store more often. I want that matter to change."

"I will be happy to have you around, Junko."

"I know. But only until I have to leave."

"Yes. After that... I can wait. I will."