A Valentine's day treasure hunt

by pinkypunkful

Valentine's day is Nanao least favorite day. One year Shunsui decides to do something different for his little Nanao-Chan and sends her on a treasure hunt in the hopes that she will discover his true feelings for her on the way.

A Valentine's day treasure hunt.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach

Valentine's day, Nanao hated Valentine's Day. She hated the overuse of the color pink, the extravagant cards and the overpriced chocolate. But the thing she hated the most on Valentine's Day was her Captain. Every year he would burst into the office and proclaim his love for her loud enough for the neighboring divisions to have registered and official noise complaint. He would then move on to give his Valentine's present to her which was always a pair of highly inappropriate underwear. Nanao could take the inappropriate presents and the declaration of love. But what she could not take was the fact that it all meant nothing. He did not love her and he was only trying to get into her pants, or so she believed. Nanao was truly in love with Shunsui. Every time she saw him her heart would flutter. He would warm her cold heart with merely his presence in the room. Her day felt incomplete without him. Everything, he was everything to her for as long as she could remember and it hurt her when he would profess his love to her because it was all empty. Nanao never showed any of her feeling towards her captain. Her icy composure and her hard core work ethic were only disguises for her true feelings.

Valentine's Day sucked for everybody who did not have somebody who loved them. The day was just a bitter reminder that yet again nobody loved you. Nanao had her day all planed out, she would: do all the days paperwork, have a quiet lunch on her own at her favorite restaurant, teach a kido class, more paperwork, go home and relax in a warm bath with a nice box of chocolates. Come nightfall she would find a secluded area out in the Rukongai and practice kido until she collapsed and then headed home to fall into a deep dreamless sleep. The last part never happened. Nanao would try to sleep but instead she would have dreams about her captain doing sinfully delicious things to a woman which was not her. These dreams would usually result in her waking up in tears. Yes Nanao hated Valentine's Day.

And so it was with a heavy heart that Nanao walked into the office early in the morning with her usual cup of tea and started on the huge pile of paperwork sitting on her desk. On several occasions she wanted to accept her Taicho's declarations of love and have a week or maybe two of blissful sex until he got bored of her and moved on. But Nanao knew that if that happened she would have to leave the 8th because she would not be able to work with him anymore.

By mid-morning, Nanao had already completed the backlog of paperwork and had started on the day's paperwork. If she kept up her current pace she would finish the day's paperwork by early evening, giving her plenty of time to finish her Valentine's Day ritual. It was silent in the office primarily due to the fact that Shunsui had not arrived yet. On any ordinary day Nanao would have begged for her Taicho to come to the office to help her with the paperwork. But today she dreaded her Taicho's arrival mainly because she did not want to face his empty declarations of love.

As she was already making excellent progress on the paperwork, Nanao decided that she should reward herself with a few minutes break to have a nice cup of tea in the mess hall. People greeted her as she walked towards the mess hall, while others simply hide behind their desks or coward behind someone. Nanao could only assume that these people had either overslept due to their excessive drinking the night before, or were really behind on their work and did not want to face her wrath. In any case Nanao was not in the mood to dealing with unprofessional subordinates. She needed all the strength she could muster for dealing with her Taicho when he finally graced the office with his presence.

When she returned fifteen minutes later with a steaming cup of jasmine tea and a plate of chocolate cake (someone had baked a chocolate cake for the occasion) she immediately noticed that something was amiss in the office. The giant stack of paperwork on her desk had been replaced by a giant bouquet of red roses. With a sign Nanao approached her desk, knowing only too well that her Taicho was responsible for this. On her desk, next to the roses was a pink envelope decorated with little hearts of flowers on it. When Nanao opened the letter a hand full of red rose petals fell out along with a pink note written in her Taichos hand.

Dear MY ever beautiful Nanao-Chan,

I have taken the paperwork hostage (WHAT! Thought Nanao) and the only way for you to get it back is if you play this little game with me. I also know that within this stack of paperwork is the very important annual divisional report that as to be handed in by the end of the day so you have no choice but to play this game. (Damn you Taicho! Why? Why could I have not gone to the 10th where stuff like this does not occur?). The rules of the game are simple. Hidden around the Seireitei are ten more of these envelopes. Inside of each there is a clue to where the next one is. At each stop there will be a little challenge for you to complete because I know that you love a challenge. If you complete the challenge successfully you will be rewarded. If you fail to compete the challenge than a piece of paperwork will be used as kido practice. If you do not complete all the challenges by the end of the work day then I will burn the annual report. If you complete all the challenges be the end of the work day then you will be handsomely rewarded. I bid you good luck with the upcoming challenges my sweet Nanao-chan.

From the ever so handsome Taicho how loves you deeply

P.S

Valentine's Day is a day of love but sadly some members of the Gotei 13 do not receive enough love. Head over to the 10th division and see if you can give Toshiro a hug to freeze his frozen heart.

Nanao was beyond angry. That idiot had stolen the paperwork just so that she would play along with his game. When she got a hold of him she was going to make him pay.

But Nanao was not stupid, she knew that if she did not play the game then Shunsui will destroy the paperwork. So with a heavy heart and a big sigh she left the room and told her third seat that he was in charge for the rest of the day. Nanao was going to play Shunsui's game and then when she completed it she was going to spend the week end (it was a Friday) recovering by doing all the things she was obviously going to miss out today.

Nanao had no idea how she was going to going to give the Taicho of the 10th division a hug without looking like a complete idiot. But her rational brain told her that if she explained to the Taicho what was going on beforehand the situation might not be that bad. Besides Hitsugaya Taicho also had an unreliable and unprofessional comrade so he would most likely sympathies with her. Gritting her teeth, Nanao knocked on the office door of the Taicho and Fukutaicho of the tenth division and waited for a response.

"Come in", came the icy tone of the Taicho. By the sounds of it Hitsugaya Taicho was already angry at something, or more likely someone with a very large chest.

"Oh hello Nanao", said Rangiku after Nanao had entered the room. "What brings you here?" the smile on her face made it clear to Nanao that she knew exactly what was going on. Silently Nanao walked over to the desk where Hitsugaya sat at and knelled down in seiza.

"Hitsugaya Taicho. I am very sorry to ask this of you but could you please offer me your assistance?" Said Nanao in a very professional tone.

There was a pause in which Hitsugaya finished the paperwork he was signing. "And what might you need my assistance for Ise Fukutaicho?" he asked looking up from his paperwork.

"Sir, Kyoraku Taicho has stolen all the eight division's paperwork and his holding it hostage until I complete this ridiculous treasure hunt her has set up. If I do not complete the treasure hunt by the end of the working day he will destroy all the paperwork," explained Nanao.

"And how may I assist you? This seems like the personal matter which should be dealt with outside of office hours, "replied Hitsugaya in his normal no nonsense tone.

"Sir, I am required to, in the words of my Taicho "give Toshiro a hug to freeze his frozen heart" in order to move on with the treasure hunt. I am asking your permission to hug you. If you allow me to hug you I will personally clear out your backlog of paperwork for you." There was silence in the room for a long time. Nanao, still in seiza was staring at the floor secretly begging that Hitsugaya Taicho would come to her aide. After a while Nanao heart the sound of a chair moving and then she saw Hitsugaya approaching her.

"You may hug me Ise Fukutaicho, but as this really is a dire situation I will do this for free. However, none of this is to leave this office do you understand?"

"Yes sir".

Nanao stood up and slowly reached out and hugged Hitsugaya. It was a very awkward and short hug. They quickly broke apart and stepped away from each other.

"Thank you Hitsugaya Taicho".

Nanao turned around and saw Rangiku hovering close to them with a small pink bag in her hand.

"Nanao, Kyoraku-kun told me to give this to you when after you hugged Taicho." Nanao marched forward and snatched the bag from Rangiku and briskly marched to the door. Trust her Taicho to have set this all up in advance and asked for Rangiku to help. This was so embarrassing. Turning at the door, Nanao bid Rangiku and Hitsugaya goodbye and walked off. When she was safely away from the office she opened the bag and looked inside. There was an elongated red velvet box inside, which upon further inspection contained a brand new pen decorated with small pink sakura flowers. The present was truly beautiful and Nanao could only gasp. There was also a note inside the bag.

My Lovely Nanao-Chan,

Congratulation on completing your first challenge. Showing someone sentiments of love every now and then is not as bad as you imagine. Maybe after this experience you will accept my sentiments of love and open your heart to me…and your legs.

The pen is beautiful but not as beautiful and you are. The sakura blossoms remind me of the time we sat together last spring under the sakura tree. I hope that in the future we will be able to do that more often. But instead of you forcing me to do paperwork we could have a picnic and afterward I would read you lovely poetry.

Your always,

Shunsui x

P.S

The sakura tree in the orchard next to the fifth division has been the location of so many happy memories of mine. I especially love the memory of the time when you wore that delectable ruby red kimono, only this time I hope that I will be able to kiss you without you fitting me.

With a sigh Nanao shunpooed of to her quarters to deposit her gift from Shunsui and then sped off to the orchard.

The orchard was empty and dull in color. There were several dozen trees but Nanao knew which one her Taicho was referring to. It was a large tree at the far end of the orchard which overlooked a small pond partially covered by weeds. But when Nanao arrived at the tree she saw nothing out of the ordinary. She walked around the tree several times taking in every little detail but saw nothing. She half expected to find some secret message carved into the tree trunk but nothing. But Nanao was not one to give up so easily so she took several steps backward and started to search the surrounding area. Still she found nothing. With an enormous sigh Nanao lay down on the ground next to the tree and stared up at the sky. She needed to think. Think like her Taicho. Although she was mighty angry at her Taicho she did have to hand it to him, he did know how to choose a good napping location. She was just starting to close her eyes when she saw far above her on one of the top branches of the tree and partially hidden, a glimmer of pink. Shunsui had hidden the next clue in the tree. Scrabbling to her feet, Nanao examined the pink envelope from below and realized that the only way to reach it was by climbing the tree. Nanao reached out and hoisted herself up onto one of the lower branches and proceeded to climb the tree. Carefully (as there was still ice on the some of the branches) Nanao climbed higher and higher until she was on the same branch of the envelope. Quickly Nanao reached out and grabbed the envelope but the force of her movement caused the weak branch beneath her to collapse sending her tumbling to the ground.

Gingerly Nanao stood up, brushing loose branches out of her hair and robes. She was lucky that she escaped the fall with only a few cuts and bruises. Although she could not say the same to her hair clip which had smashed during the tumble allowing her hair flow freely behind her. How bothersome and she really liked that hair clip. Nanao opened the envelope and saw two pieced of paper. The first piece of paper was a sketch of a beautiful scene with roses, rolling hills and mountains in the distance. In fact the sketch reminded her of the Lake District in the Rukongai. Shunsui must have spent hours drawing this. It was truly a beautiful gift. The second piece of paper was a note which contained her next clue.

My lovely Nanao-Chan,

Did you enjoy your nap? (Clever Taicho thought Nanao as the only way she would have ever found her next clue was if she lay down and napped under the tree like he did all those times.) This is my favorite napping area in the entire Seireitei (although I must say that I love napping in the office where I can watch you work and dream that one day you will join me on the sofa). The tranquility of the area is delightful, but not as delightful as my lovely Nanao-Chan.

You once told me that your favorite place in the whole soul society was the Lake District. Here is a sketch of the area that I made for you. My dream is that one day you and I will go there and enjoy the beautiful scenery together.

Your very sexy Taicho x

P.S

It must be lunch time by now and food is a very good aphrodisiac. Hurry back to your quarters before it gets cold.

Nanao's stomach rumbled signalling to her that she was indeed hungry. Giving herself one last look over to see if she really was OK after her tumble she leapt into shunpo.

Nanao walked briskly through the division in keeping an eye out for any sign of her Taicho. She did not know whether she should be stark raging mad at him for steeling the very important paperwork and making her go on a ridiculous treasure hunt, or be flattered that he would go to such lengths to set something up like this. The presents he gave her were sweet and well thought out which made her hope that maybe he really did feel something for her. But her rational mind told her not to be so foolish. Her Taicho was the famous womanizer of the Gotei 13 and only wanted to get with her so that he could show everybody his ability to seduce any woman no matter how stubborn they were. Nanao was many things, but she would not be a trophy for her Taicho. These gifts were nice, but that was it, they were only gifts and not declarations of love.

Having arrived at her quarters, Nanao slid open the door and was met with the delicious smell of fish. It was intoxicating and utterly delicious that Nanao stood still for a moment savoring the smell. Closing the door behind her, Nanao walked towards her table and saw and large array of different foods artfully placed on it. Nanao knelt down and helped herself to rice, fish and vegetables, all of which tasted like they had been made by the gods. The food must have been imported from one of the fancy restaurants located just outside the Seireitei walls because in the 8th could not cook this well. It seemed highly unlikely that her Taicho, the laziest man in the whole of soul society would have gotten up early to cook.

Having eaten as much as she could Nanao stood up and was just about to clear the table when a large pink box in the corner of the room caught her eye. Upon further inspection Nanao saw that the box contained chocolates, and not just any chocolates but handmade chocolates. Whoever made them must have spent hours doing it. The present was a beautiful gift, but only that, a gift. Nanao closed the box of chocolates and started to look for an infamous pink envelope. She found it stuck to the bottom of the box.

Sweet Nanao-Chan,

I hope you made it back to your quarters before the food got cold. These chocolates were made with the best chocolate powder I could find. The chocolates contain either strawberries or chocolate cream inside because I know that they are your favorite type.

He had made these chocolates for her. It must have taken hours to make them just right. If this was not a declaration of love then she did not know what was. But she was still so unsure. Her Taicho must have made chocolates for women before so there was nothing really special in the chocolates that he gave her. She was just another woman in the long line of woman waiting for a chance to bed the famous Shunsui Kyoraku. She was most certainly not the last woman. This thought brought tears to her eyes. She so badly wanted her Taicho to love her with the same intensity that she loved him. The ridiculous declarations of love in his notes to her and the outline of his stupid dreams involving her were like daggers to her heart because they were all empty promises. They meant nothing to him so she was not going to make them matter to her. She quickly glanced at the bottom of the page and saw that she had to go to the library to find a book about fairy tales. Nanao was going to play his game but she was not going to listen to his empty words. She was just doing this for the paperwork.

Nanao spent the next few hours running around the Seireitei trying to complete her Taicho's ridiculous treasure hunt. At the library Nanao found the next clue in one of the books she had read with her Taicho many years ago. The envelope contained a small silver necklace with a small, delicate pink sakura pendent. She was then forced to go to the eleventh division and complete one of their strenuous workout regimes where she won another pink envelope which contained one small silver earring that matched her necklace. After that she headed to the thirteenth division and was forced to catch on of Ukitake's koi fish. Sadly in her effort to catch the fish she fell head first into the pond. After a lot of splashing about she finally caught the fish with a small capsule attached around his neck. The capsule contained the other earring, thus completing the set and instruction to go back to the eight division kitchens. After refusing a laughing Ukitake offer for a blanket, Nanao sped off to the division, leaving the note from Shunsui on the ground. His empty declarations of love could rot in the ground for all she cared.

The eight division kitchen was located at the center of the compound for easy access for the hangover Shinigami. The kitchen itself was large and spotless, which was a huge contrast with the other parts of the 8th division. At the center of the kitchen there was a huge stove and there, amongst the pots and pans sat another pink envelope. Running over to the side, Nanao swiped up the envelope and tore it open.

My incredibly beautiful and luscious Nanao,

Cooking is supposed to be very therapeutic. In side I have included a recipe for a simple chocolate cake. If you can cook this cake then you will be rewarded. You will find all the ingredients in the kitchen. I know your cooking skills are not perfect so I have made this a rather easy challenge.

Your love,

Shunsui

P.S

I find it heart-breaking that a girl with such lovely hair would always tie it up. Your usual hair clip must be getting old so I have bought you a new one.

And he was correct, there next to the envelope sat an elegant purple silk hair clip. It was simple and elegant and Nanao loved it. However, she would not give her Taicho the benefit of seeing her wear it so she tucked it in her sleeve.

Nanao sighed, Her Taicho was right; she really did not know how to cook. But a quick glance at the recipe soothed her growing nerves as it looked like a relatively simple cake to bake. All it demanded of her was to measure out all the ingredients and mix it all together. With new found determination Nanao measured out butter, flower, sugar, chocolate powder and cracked the eggs into a large bowl and started to mix. Slowly Nanao poured out the mixture into a cake tin and placed the tin in the oven. All she had to do now was wait. In order to kill time Nanao flicked through a few of the recipe books lying around the kitchen. The food in the recipe book looked delicious and for a moment Nanao wished that she knew how to cook. But in reality she had no time what with doing paperwork and chasing her Taicho.

Nanao looked around the kitchen to find something else to kill time with, when her eyes fell upon a small red tin. Upon further inspection Nanao realised that it was baking powder. With horror she realised that she had forgotten to add baking powder. With haste she pulled out of the cake and poured some of the white powder into the cake mixture and frantically started to mix it in. With that done the cake was placed back into the oven. Actually, thought Nanao, If she put the temperature of the oven up several degrees then the cake will be finished sooner, thus giving her more time to finish this ridiculous hunt. Smiling at her own genius Nanao turned to knob up several degrees and waited. If her calculation were correct the cake would be done in ten minutes.

Fixing herself a cup of tea Nanao waited for the cake to finish. Around the time the cake was supposed to finish a small female Shinigami entered the kitchen and looked around.

"May I help you?" asked Nanao looking over at the Shinigami.

"Oh, Ise Fukutaicho I did not see you there. I was ordered yesterday by the Taicho to come to the kitchen at this time and test your cooking. If it was to my standards then I was to give you this". In her hands was a small pink envelope.

"Oh well Ok, the cake should be done by now," replied Nanao while walking over to the oven. However, upon further inspection she realized that the oven was smoking slightly. Cursing out loud, Nanao yanked open the door to the oven and out billowed a small cloud of black smoke. Inside the oven sat a rather burnt looking cake which seemed to have expanded out of the cake tin.

"Wow Ise Fukutaicho I heard that you were a bad cook but seriously that cake looks terrible," said the Shinigami in awe. Nanao gave her a look which dared her to continue talking. There was no point asking, the cake most certainly did not meet the standards of the Shinigami.

"I assume that envelope in your hands is mine?" asked Nanao with a crisp tone.

"Yes, But-but-but," stammered the Shinigami while slowly backing away.

"Well what?" snapped Nanao now at the very end of her patience. She really had not time to deal with this Shinigami.

"Kyoraku Taicho said that I was only supposed to give you this envelope if you completed the task. And according to me I do not think that that cake passes the test," said the Shinigami rather quickly, refusing to look Nanao in the eyes.

"Look I do not have time so please hand over the envelope."

"No Kyoraku Taicho ordered me."

Nanao's eyes narrowed, this was not going as planned.

"Right then, you will hand over the envelope or else I am going to have to take it from you with force," said Nanao in a professional tone. She really did not want to take the envelope by force. Hell she did not even want to participate in this ridiculous treasure hunt but she had no choice.

"No Ise Fukutaicho, but Taicho ordered," replied the Shinigami in a slightly forceful tone. The poor girl was shaking out of fear. Nanao was stunned; she knew that the 8th divisions was fiercely loyal to their Taicho. But never had she seen such determination to fulfill and order in the face of such danger (and trust me and angry fukutaicho was dangerous).

Sadly Nanao did not have the time to admire her subordinates' loyalty and as quick as she could she pounced on the poor girl and wrestled her down to the floor. The poor girl screamed and tried to fight back, shouting something along the lines of 'Taicho ordered'. They were causing such a raucous that other members of the eight started arriving, curious as to what was causing the raucous. What they saw shocked them. Their Fukutaicho was fighting with another female Shinigami over a pink envelope.

"Isn't this supposed to involve bikinis and mud?" asked one of the male Shinigami bystanders' to another.

Eventually after much screaming and fighting, Nanao pulled the envelope free and staggered to her feet. Quickly, before the female Shinigami could take the envelope away, she opened it and read the note from her captain.

Dearest Nanao,

Congratulations for completing this challenge. As a reward I have placed a pink box in your quarters which will contain your last and final challenge. Yes my dearest Nanao I know I said that there would be ten challenges but I ran out of ideas and got bored. (How very typical of you Taicho thought Nanao).

From you not so secret admirer,

Shunsui x

Nanao sighed and crunched the note up and burnt it with a small kido flame. After barking at the surrounding Shinigami to get back to work Nanao headed off to her quarters for her final task feeling lighter with the knowledge that it would soon all be over.

Opening the door to her quarters, Nanao noticed a medium sized pink box sitting on her table. Next to it sat another pink envelope.

Sexy Nanao-Chan,

I know that it has been a challenging day for you so I have reserved the division baths for you so that you can have a soak in privacy. Although I must say that I have always dreamed of watching you bathe. Maybe one day you will allow me that pleasure, along with others pleasures. Inside the box there is a new set of bath soaps for you along with another gift. I hope you enjoy them all, especially rubbing body lotion all over your body. Or maybe you will allow me that privilege.

From the man who loves you more than you know,

Shunsui x

Nanao tore the paper up and threw it aside. Her Taicho's sexual hints made her feel sick because she secretly dreamed about him rubbing lotion all over her, and it hurt because that fantasy would never come true. Her Taicho was only playing with her and that was it, his love for her was only a game and not the real thing.

With a sign Nanao opened the box and saw a collection a bath soaps and lotions. Upon further inspection Nanao saw that they were handmade. Her Taicho must have ordered them for her in advance. All the trouble her Taicho must have gone through to acquire the bath products made Nanao feel slightly guilty. Her guilt was further enhanced when she saw that her Taicho had also given her a book, and not just any book, a first edition of the Take of Genju, her favorite story as a little girl. He must have spent a fortune on all this and it make her guilty because she could not and will not be able to repay him. A small voice said that she could repay him in sex but it would be shallow sex. Plus sleeping with her Taicho knowing full well that he did not love her in return would destroy her, both mentally and physically. She would lose everything, her job, her honor, and most importantly she would lose her friendship with her Taicho.

However, Nanao would not allow her guilt and depressed mood spoil her mood. She was only minutes away from completing the treasure hunt and then this whole ordeal would be other. With a smile Nanao gathered her new bath soaps together and made her way towards the eight division baths.

True to his word the baths were completely empty. Normally other members of the division would be present, especially after advanced sword training which ended a few minutes ago. But no the bath were completely empty. Nanao smiled, her Taicho may be an idiot most of the time, but occasionally he could do wonderful things. Sadly the moment of happiness was destroyed by a small voice at the back of her mind reminding her that her Taicho was only doing this for sex. It was only then that Nanao realized that the bath was filled with hundreds of rose petals which floated on the water tops. There were also several lit candles placed of small floating red hearts that illuminated the room in a sensual light. The sight was simply breath taking. With a content smile Nanao undressed and gently got into the bath. The water was the perfect temperature and it almost immediately relaxed Nanao's muscles. Silently Nanao lay on her back and let the water and the rich rose aroma overtake her. She silently drifted around the bath not focusing on anything of particular importance. It was a relaxing technique that Isane had taught her last year when she had been admitted into the fourth for stress related problems.

A light tapping awoke Nanao from her relaxing mind. Swirling around Nanao saw one of the floating red hearts, but instead of holding a candle like all the other ones it contained the last pink envelope. Sitting up and Nanao opened the envelope.

Congratulation Nanao-Chan!

You have completed the treasure hunt which means that the paperwork has survived. You may be wondering why I sent you on this treasure hunt. The truth is that I wanted to do something different to express my love. I know that you do not like my public declarations of my love to you so I decided to do it more subtly. I hope this treasure hunt has made you realize how important you are to me. Your beauty and fierce intelligent are what make you so special to me Nanao and I hope that one day I will be able to make you mine.

Your eternal love,

Shunsui x

Nanao stared at the note in shock. And then came suddenly the anger and depression. He had said how important she was to him, but he had not said that he loved her. This letter was like a cruel reality check for Nanao, her Taicho did not lover her, he only valued her as a subordinate. That was all she would ever be to him, a valuable subordinate and it hurt her. She wanted to be more. But then he only wanted to toy with her affection for him. Making her go on a ridiculous treasure hunt where at every interval she had to do stupid things and read his stupid notes. She had endured a day of torture and all she got to hear from him was that she was a valuable subordinate. That cut her deep. And worst was that he had said that she was beautiful, but most nights he had a different whore in his bed. So apparently she was beautiful but not beautiful enough to share his bed. She was worse than a common whore in the eyes of her Taicho. The nerve of him! Nanao suddenly did not care about all the beautiful gifts her Taicho had given her because to her it was an insult. He only wanted to sleep with her just to claim her. It was sickening that she even liked a man like him. She needed to tell him. She needed to tell her Taicho that she was would not sleep with him just for the sake of it. He needed to know that she was not some trophy that he could claim.

With anger Nanao climbed out of the bath and marched to her clothes. Changing into her uniform she stormed out of the room. Her Taicho was going to be sorry that he massed with her.

The sun was just setting when Nanao kicked open hers and Shunsui's office door and marched in positively seething. There lounging on the sofa was Shunsui, his pink haori splayed out underneath him.

"Ah my lovely Nanao-Chan! Lovely, lovely Nanao-Chan you made it! Congratulations", said Shunsui while tipping his hat back to reveal his eyes.

Nanao was livid. She had spent the whole day running around getting soaking wet and muddy while trying to complete his ridiculous treasure hunt while he just lazed around on the sofa all day. If looks could kill Shunsui Kyoraku would be a dead man.

"Yare Nanao-Chan what is the problem? You do not look happy. Tell me what happened?" Shunsui slowly rose from the sofa and walked towards Nanao.

"You really have no idea what is wrong Taicho?" said Nanao threw gritted teeth, her reiatsu rising along with her anger.

"Nanao?"

Nanao could not stand it anymore. She lost it. "YOU COMPLETE IDIOT! I SPEND THE ENTIRE DAY COMPLETING YOUR RIDICULOUS TREASURE HUNT. HAVE YOU ANY IDEA HOW EMBARRASSING IT WAS? I HAD TO CLIMB TREES, SWIM IN PONDS AND WADE AROUND IN MUD JUST FOR YOU TO PLAY A GAME. WELL I HAVE HAD IT; I AM SICK AND TIRED OF YOU FOOLING AROUND. THE NEXT TIME YOU WANT TO PLAY A GAME GO AND BOTHER SOMEONE ELSE BECAUSE I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS! AND STOP MESSING WITH MY FEELINGS! WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO STOP LYING TO ME ABOUT YOU SUPPOSED LOVE FOR ME? WE BOTH KNOW THAT IS NOT TRUE. KAMI!" Nanao reiatsu flared, flooding the room in angry waves causing the lights in the room to flicker. People outside the office gasped and collapsed to the floor, overs simply ran away. Nobody could every recall Ise Nanao being this angry before. Shunsui could only gap at the angry woman in front of him. He knew that Nanao was strong, but he never knew she was this strong. Her eyes had turned a deep shade of purple which her cheeks flushed red with her anger. Shunsui had never seen a more beautiful sight. His dear Nanao beautiful, dangerous and he loved it. Sadly her dangerous beauty had to end here otherwise she might end up hurting herself. Shunsui released some of his reiatsu and forced it towards Nanao, trying to suppress her. It was a long, drawn out battle between the two of them but eventually Shunsui won and was able to force Nanao reiatsu back into her body. The two of them stood facing each other, both gasping for breath.

"Nanao, I am sorry for everything. I never meant for you to feel this way. But you have to believe me when I say that I love you", said Shunsui while gasping for breath, his eyes reflecting his serious intent.

"Save it. We both know that that is not true. You only want me as a trophy of your success in seducing women. You never loved me and you never will. So please stop toying with me because every time you do it hurts me," replied Nanao while trying to force back the tears in her eyes that were threatening to overwhelm her.

"Is that really what you think of me Nanao?" Shunsui looked at her with eyes full of hurt and broken dreams.

"What else is there? You always treat women like they are disposable so why should I be any different. Now please, please stop this because whenever you say that you love me it kills a little piece of me. Your false declarations of love are hurting me because they will never be true. You will never love me the way that I". Nanao paused and wiped the tears out of her eyes. She looked Shunsui straight in the eyes and saw all the hurt within her reflected within him. "I love you Taicho and it is killing me because you will never love me back." Nanao was totally, utterly defeated.

"Nanao" said Shunsui in a weak tone as he slowly started to walk towards her.

"Don't come any closer!" spat Nanao.

"Please Nanao, please listen to me".

"NO! No, you have already taken so much from me".

"Nanao, please don't cry," whispered Shunsui who was now standing only a few centimeters away from her. He could see the vulnerability and hurt in her purple eyes and it stabbed at him. He was responsible for all her pain and that hurt him worse than some of the sword wounds he had received in the past. Never, he swore to himself, was he going to make Nanao feel this vulnerable and upset again.

"Please Taicho you have already taken me pride and honor. Please do not take my tears. They are all that I have left. You have taken everything from me, please spare me my tears," Said Nanao in a weak voice. Slowly Nanao stepped away from her Taicho and walked away to the door and with one last sorrowful look at her Taicho she left. Shunsui was frozen to the spot and stared with eyes void of emotion at the door. He felt numb and disgusted with himself. He hated himself for what he had done to Nanao. He really was a repulsive man.

Members of the eight division where used to experiencing their two superiors squabbling. But never had they experienced their Fukutaicho losing control of her reiatsu in an angry rage, or their Taicho having to use his own reiatsu to counter the explosion of reiatsu. They all knew that something had happened between their two superiors, something which had resulted in Ise Fukutaicho storming out of the office with tears in her eyes. All of the members of the eight secretly wanted their two superiors to get together. They were meant for each other. But sadly it looked like that was never going to happen. The fight that they had just had seemed to be pretty serious. Each member tried to ignore the cries of agony coming from Ise fukutaicho quarters. They were truly heart wrenching.

Nanao felt totally humiliated and full of self-loathing. Why had she been so naive. Why had she believed that her Taicho could possibly love her back? His declarations of love were all empty offers and now because of her weakness he knew her true feelings for him. It sickened her thinking of the pathetic way she had acted only a few moments ago. This was Shunsui Kyoraku she was dealing with, the notorious womanizer of the Souls Society. Why would someone like him, who had bedded in the past a vast number of women prettier than she was, love someone as plan as she was. It made no sense. He was just toying with her and she had been naive enough to think that it was all true.

Oddly enough she felt no malice towards her Taicho. She had known he was a notorious womanize, incapable of having a relationship lasting more than a month before he got bored, before she had dared to believe that his declarations of love were true. It was who he was and it was her fault that she believed otherwise.

Nanao looked towards her table and saw all the presents her Taicho had given her for Valentine's Day. The necklace, painting and all the love notes, what did they all mean? They were expensive gifts, too expensive for false declarations of love. So why had her Taicho given them to her? Was it to mock her? Or was it an actual declaration of love? But both answered seemed incorrect. Her Taicho was kind and would never mock a women and it wrong to believe that her Taicho loved her.

Slowly Nanao uncurled herself from her foetus position on the floor and made her way to the table laden with gifts. She could not bare to look at the gifts because they reminded her of all her broken dreams. She gathered them all together and placed them inside a bag. She did not have the heart to throw them away, so she hide them at the back of her closet, if she did not see it, she would not be reminded of it. Sadly hiding the gifts did not satisfy the burning shame and self-hatred within her. She could not stand to think of it, of him. It hurt her. She would have to leave the 8th because she could not imagine herself working for her Taicho anymore. The 8th had been her home for over a century and now she was forced to leave because her womanizer Taicho did not love her back. It seemed absurd to leave your home and everything else because someone you loved did not love you back. But the idea of sitting in the office and staring at her Taicho and be reminded of what she could not have was too painful for her. However, leaving her home and her subordinated was equally painful. She needed to think and breath, somewhere away from the 8th. Nanao marched over to the door, put on her shoes and left her quarters.

Ukitake had felt Nanao's reiatsu explode all the way at the thirteenth, and out of concern for his friends he decided to visit the 8th. Rain clouds were gathering by the time he had arrived at the 8th, it looked like they were in for one hell of a storm. Ukitake knocked on the office door of the Taicho and Fukutaicho but there was no answer. Slowly Ukitake slid open the door and saw Shunsui sitting Indian style on the floor staring blankly at the door.

"Shunsui? What is wrong? Are you drunk?" inquired Ukitake.

Silence…

"Shunsui? What is wrong?" asked a now increasingly worried Ukitake.

"She-she left, I made her so angry", whispered Shunsui in a weak voice.

"What? Who? Shunsui tell me what happened". Ukitake closed the door and walked towards his friend and sat down facing him.

"Nanao, I hurt her badly", whispered Shunsui who was still staring out into the distance.

"Hurt her? Shunsui what did you do?" Ukitake's voice had a dark edge to it. He was rather fond of her having watched her grow up. If Shunsui had hurt the girl or had forced her to do something that she did not want to do Ukitake would hurt Shunsui. It did not matter that the two of them had been close friends for centuries, we was willing to overlook that fact and hurt him if he discovered that his friend had hurt the girl.

Ukitake's dark tone seemed to snap Shunsui out of his daze. "No Ukitake I did not hurt her like that. I would never hurt Nanao." Shunsui stared at his friend with dark brown eyes, void of its usual happy glint. The nerve of him, thought Shunsui, he loved Nanao deeply and the through that his best friend thought that he had hurt is beloved Nanao made is blood boil.

"Then tell me what happened Shunsui", said Ukitake in an exasperated tone.

There was a tense pause between the two of them, broken only by the sound of rain falling.

"I was worried that Nanao was spending too much time in the office and not enough time outside so I designed a treasure hunt for her", said Shunsui in a defeated tone.

"Yes Shunsui I know about the treasure hunt. You talked about it with me all of last month."

Shunsui stared at Ukitake for a long moment before starting up again. "Ok well while she was out completing the treasure hunt I took all of the paperwork for the next month and sat down and completed all of it." Ukitake could feel his mouth open slowly as he stared at his friend in shock. A months' worth of paperwork, Shunsui must really love Nanao. "Yes I know Juu", said Shunsui in response to Ukitake's shock, "I competed a months' worth of paperwork so that Nanao could have a break. That was the final gift for her, a month off work for her to relax. But I never had time to tell her that." Shunsui sounded so utterly depressed by the end of the sentence.

"A month worth of paperwork?! Shunsui, that- that is impressive," whispered Ukitake in utter shock.

"Yes I know. But I never had time to give her the last gift because she came bursting into the office and started shouting at me. She said that I was only joking about my love for her and that she wanted me to stop teasing her because it hurt her so much. She said that it hurt her because she loved me and it killed her inside to know that I would never love her in return". There was a pregnant pause in which Ukitake stared at his friend.

Suddenly Shunsui started to laugh hysterically, "She said that she loved me. Finally after all these years she finally admitted to love me."

Ukitake stared at his friend with a mixture of shock and sympathy for him. The irony of the situation was not lost to him. For years Shunsui had deeply loved Nanao and finally she admitted to love him only to realise that she thought that he did not love her back. Ukitake would have laughed at his friend if the situation was not so dire.

"I have to go," Said Shunsui full of determination as he quickly jumped to his feet and proceeded to the door.

"Wait Shunsui where do you think you are going?" asked a startled Ukitake who go up to follow Shunsui.

"I need to tell Nanao that I was not lying when I said that I loved her. If she does not listen, well then, I-I-I will think of something. I just need to find her".

"Wait Shunsui. Just stop and think for a moment. Maybe Nanao wants to be left alone."

Shunsui stopped at the door and searched for Nanao reiatsu. She was not in her quarters or any other part of the eight. He expanded his search throughout the entire Seireitei and eventually located her standing in an orchard next to the third division.

"Shunsui please think about this" said Ukitake while placing a hand on Shunsui shoulder.

"Juu, I really hurt Nanao and I need to explain to her that I love her. I need to make this right," answered Shunsui while stepping out of Ukitake's grip and making him way down the corridor.

"Shunsui please wait"

Shunsui continued to march towards to exit at a brisk pace. He had no idea what he was going to do. All he knew was that he had to speak to Nanao.

The rain was really pouring by the time Shunsui reached to exit. With a sign he stepped out of the cover of the 8th division and started to walk towards the gate. Behind him he could hear Ukitake shouting at him.

"Shunsui, are our sure that this is the best of ideas?" shouted Ukitake over the sound of the rain.

Shunsui turned around, his pink haori already soaked through, "I don't know but at least I have to try," and with that he shunpooed away. Ukitake sighed, his friend really was not thinking straight. What a mess he thought as he shunpooed back to his quarters.

Nanao walked and walked until she reached the small orchard next to the third division. This orchard held so many memories, it was the same orchard her captain had brought her too in order to escape from the head captain. Nanao could recall vividly all the times she had found her captain lying down underneath one of the sakura trees admiring the blossoms and all the times she had refused his offers to sit down and have a drink with him. Those were the good times because although she did not have his heart Nanao had his friendship. Now she had ruined everything by believing that he could ever love her.

One drop then two fell from the sky. Nanao looked up at the dark, ominous clouds above her that seemed to reflect her inner thoughts at the moment. She snorted at the poetic thought; it was the sort of think her Taicho would think. Even though the skies opened up and it was raining the hardest it had all year, Nanao did not move. The rain falling around her had a sort of relaxing effect; it cleansed her mind and body. Closing her eyes, Nanao imagined that for a moment her Taicho really did love her and that instead of standing outside in the rain she was snuggled up to her Taicho on her window seat watching the rain fall.

Nanao was pulled out of her fantasy by a hand on her shoulder. Turning around Nanao looked straight into the intense chocolate brown eyes of her Taicho. His clothes stuck to his body, outlining his well-formed shoulders and chest. The sign of him sucked the air out of Nanao's lungs. He was truly beautiful.

"Nanao what are doing standing outside in a rain storm?!" frowned Shunsui, staring down at Nanao with serious eyes. "You should not be here. Come on let's get out of here before you get ill."

Nanao continued to stare at him, unable to form any coherent sentence. Why had he come?

Shunsui shook Nanao lightly, "Nanao? Come on we should leave". Still Nanao could not move. All she did was stare into the intense brown eyes of the man she loved. Slowly her eyes swept over his body. And suddenly she wished she had not, the rain water running down his chest seemed to enhance his magnificent muscles. All Nanao wanted to do was run her hands through chest hair and feel his muscles.

"Why?" asked Nanao in a small tone after finally regaining the ability to speak.

Shunsui stared down at Nanao with a shocked expression on his face. "Why? Because if you stay out here longer you will get sick." He replied with an undertone of impatience.

"Why do you care Taicho?"

Shunsui was truly shocked by Nanao's question. Why did he care? Because he loved his Nanao-Chan more than anything in the world. He needed her, she was his sun on cold days, and the moon in cold nights. His world seemed to move around his Nanao-chan. "Because I love you Nanao and I hate it when you are not in the office. Scrap that, I hate it when you are not in my life. You are my everything Nanao".

Nanao looked into the serious and intense eyes of her Taicho and saw that there was no glint of mischief in them. He was being totally serious. But Nanao would not be as naïve as she was in the past.

"Please believe me Nanao", whispered Shunsui full of need.

"I-I don't know. I-I don't believe you" whispered Nanao, looking away from Shunsui's eyes.

"Believe this Nanao" said Shunsui full of determination. Shunsui stepped forward and lightly kissed Nanao on the lips. The kiss was feather soft and seemed to bring warmth to every inch of Nanao's body. He tasted delicious and subconsciously Nanao pulled Shunsui down further, deepening the kiss. Shunsui paused for a moment, shocked at Nanao's willingness to deepen the kiss. But who was he to reject his lovely fukutaicho when she was kissing him deeply. With a growly Shunsui wrapped his hands around Nanao's thighs and lifted her against him, making sure her legs wrapped around his waist, while plundering her mouth with his tongue. Nanao moaned lightly at the feel of Shunsui's tongue dancing around with her and the rain crashing against her skin. It was intoxicating and invigorating feeling so close to Shunsui. Gingerly, Nanao ran her hands through Shunsui's hair and down his back, feeling the taunt muscles of his shoulders. Shunsui moaned lightly and crushed Nanao more to his body. Shunsui had never kissed anybody as good as his Nanao-chan. She was soft, giving and domineering all at ones and he loved it.

They only broke apart when breathing became a problem. Shunsui stared at Nanao, taking in the way her wet hair hung loosely around her face and the way her clothes clung to her body showing off her curves. God he wanted to taste her. Slowly Nanao slid down Shunsui's wet body loving the feeling of his perfect waist and thighs between her legs. She gave a satisfied smile when she slid over the bulge in his pants and hearing him moan. She wanted to hear more of the sound so instead of sliding further down she grinded up against Shunsui's bulge. Shunsui moaned loudly at the feel of Nanao's centre rubbing against his straining erection. Looking down he saw Nanao smiling, so his little Nanao-Chan was a tease. He loved it. Two can play at that game. As quick as a flash Shunsui pulled at Nanao's sash and opened her kosode, revealing her delicate cream breasts. Like a hungry man, he sucked and nibbled her breast while his hand played with her neglected one. Nanao gasped and moaned at the onslaught of sensations. Needing something stable to hold onto Nanao ran her hands through Shunsui's wet hair, lacing her fingers in it, and pulling him closer. It was too much, the rain, the feel of Shunsui sucking her breasts and between her legs.

"T-Taicho, p-please stop", gasped Nanao unable to take any more of the onslaught of sensations. Suddenly Shunsui pulled back and lowered Nanao down to the ground.

"Nanao?" asked Shunsui the hurt in his voice apparent.

"Please, not here, I-I, not…" But Nanao could not finish her sentence, or form anything coherent as she was still reeling from the heavy kissing with Shunsui. With a laugh Shunsui kissed Nanao again on the lips.

"Anything for my lovely Nanao-Chan," said Shunsui while picking Nanao up. Nanao barely had time to wrap her arms around Shunsui before they were speeding away in shunpo.

Normally Nanao would cling to her Taicho for dear life when he used shunpo, but she was feeling particularly devilish today. Nanao leaned forward and started to kiss Shunsui's exposed chest, paying particular attention to his now exposed nipple. Shunsui nearly dropped Nanao. God, who knew that his little Nanao-Chan was such a devil. He like it. Shunsui quickened his pace and soon he was ripping open the door to his quarters.

Desire clouded Shunsui's mind, making him unable to form and coherent thought. All there was in the world was Nanao, and right now she was kissing and biting his nipple sending pleasure waved through him like nothing he had ever experienced before. Needed to taste her again, Shunsui warped Nanao around his waist again and kissed her deeply, exploring her mouth. Nanao's hands moved to Shunsui's shoulders, removing his two haori. Gradually Shunsui pulled away from Nanao and started to kiss down her neck to arrive at her collar bone, to which he happily kissed and bit. Nanao's gasps were like music to his ears. Nanao was lost, lost in a sea of sensation and when Shunsui's hands removed her kosode again and pressed his lips to her breasts she lost all reasoning. Like a wild animal she tore Shunsui's kosode away from his body and madly clung to his body for support against the onslaught of sensation. She was desperate in need for some release. Slowly her hand moved down Shunsui's body, loving the way he moaned against her breasts. When he hands wrapped around his member Shunsui gasped.

Shunsui needed Nanao, and he needed her fast otherwise he feared he might explode. The way she was stroking his member through his hakama was like nothing he had ever experienced before. Quickly he carried Nanao to his room and dumped her onto his futon. Quickly he removed his hakama, finally freeing his straining member. Nanao gasped when she saw Shunsui in all his glory. And glorious he was. Shunsui smiled at the look Nanao was giving his member, it stroked his ego, but sadly not as good as when Nanao stoked him. Like a tiger hunting his prey, Shunsui crawled up and covered Nanao's body with his own, kissing her deeply. Nanao loved the feeling of Shunsui's perfect body covering hers, touching her in all the right places.

"Nanao, tell me if you want to stop, because I don't think I can stop myself later on", whispered Shunsui against Nanao's lips.

"Don't, please, don't stop," gasped Nanao.

"I'm sorry Nanao, but I don't think I can be gentle with you right now"

"Then don't be, lose yourself with me".

Shunsui smiled and slowly stated to kiss down Nanao's neck, and along her chest, lavishing her now purple breasts some more before moving down. Slowly, Nanao felt her hakama being removed, leaving her bare and exposed. With a devilish smile Shunsui descended upon her centre, running his tongue along her slit, drawing out moans and screams from Nanao. She tasted even better than what he had imagined. She was a delicious mixture of sweetness and something that could only be described as Nanao. He was drunk on it lapping at her juices like a starving man. Nanao was screaming and writhing beneath Shunsui, wildly bucking her hips while her hands laced into his hair. The feeling of his silky tongue and hot breath running along her slit and stroking her clit was too much for Nanao. She felt lost in a sea of sensation, with Shunsui her only stability. She could feel something building within her, rising with each lick of Shunsui's tongue. And when Shunsui dipped his tongue in between her folds and started to move within her, she lost all reasoning. She was screaming madly as her orgasm ripped through her. Nanao swore she saw stars.

When Nanao recovered from her orgasm she noticed Shunsui staring at her with eyes filled with wonder and something else. Could it have been love?

"Beautiful", whispered Shunsui. She was, all sweaty and flushed from her recent orgasm. Nanao was a sight to behold. Nanao looked into Shunsui's dark eyes and saw his hungry look and smiles internally. He was hungry for her and she loved it.

"Nanao, if you don't want to continue we can stop now" said Shunsui with a strained voice. Slowly Nanao rose up and kissed Shunsui deeply and dragged him down to cover her body with his. She may not have spoken her desire, but Shunsui could feel it. He ran is hand along Nanao's leg, coaxing her to wrap her lags around him. In this position, Nanao's centre rubbed against Shunsui staining member, soaking it in her juices. Suddenly Shunsui thrusted forward filling Nanao in one go. Nanao gasped as all the air inside her was forced out. It was mind boggling how full she felt. Shunsui's member was above average and seemed to completely fill her. Shunsui pulled back until he was almost completely free of Nanao warmth, before he drove back into her hard. Nanao screamed as her nerves were set alight with pleasure. Shunsui set a heavy pace, pounding into Nanao and glorifying in her screams. She felt like heaven, all wet and warm and perfect for him. Nanao was begging that Shunsui take her harder and faster so he hocked her legs around his shoulders and continued to pound her. This enabled him to go deeper and faster, the screams of pleasure coming from Nanao made him realise that she loved what he was doing to her.

The reckless pounding Nanao was receiving from Shunsui was heaven and exactly what she needed. Subconsciously she knew that she was going to be sore tomorrow, but right then and there she did not care. The incredible pleasure he was given her was mind boggling. She could feel the pressure building up within her. The pleasure was unbearable; she could not take it anymore. Nanao screamed loudly, shouting Shunsui's name as she came hard. Nanao was in heaven. Subconsciously she heard Shunsui groan his release.

Using the last of his sanity and strength Shunsui pulled out of Nanao and slumped forward completely spent. Nanao desperately tried to catch her breath. The sex was incredible and without doubt the best she had ever had. Smiling to herself Nanao snuggled closer to Shunsui. Eyes closing, she allowed sleep to take her.

When Nanao awoke a few hours later the first thing she realised was that it was pitched black outside. The second thing she noticed was that she was lying in a bed which was not her own and there was an arm wrapped around her waist. With a small groan she remembered earlier and the fact that she had slept with her Taicho. She had practically begged her Taicho to take. She had offered herself up like all the other women her Taicho bedded on a weekly basis. How disgraceful of her.

She needed to think away from the warmth presence of her Taicho. Slowly, without waking him, Nanao remove the arms around her waist and replaced her body with a pillow. With the same grace as a cat Nanao rose to her feet and left the room, grabbing a simple blue haori lying on the floor. Although her Taicho had a huge wardrobe he still left his clothes lying around on the floor. Without making any noise, Nanao made her way through her Taicho's quarters to his small kitchen to make herself some tea. She had been to her Taicho's quarters before, usually to deposit his drunken, unconscious body after a night of drinking. She knew where everything was.

With a nice cup of steaming tea, Nanao leaned against the wall and sighed. She needed to get her thoughts in order. She had slept with her Taicho, something which she had promised herself that she would never do even though her heart desperately wanted it. She also knew that her Taicho was not one to form commitments so this amorous encounter was only going to last a few weeks. However, he had given her very thoughtful gift and proclaimed his love for her, and not in his usual playful tone but in a serious one. But it made no sense for her Taicho to love her; she was too plain and boring in comparison to his usual bed mates. Nanao had three options: firstly, she could accept that she slept with her superior and then hand in her resignation because it was inappropriate for her to have a relationship with her superior. She could also act like nothing had happened, it's not like people saw her last night. And lastly she continues seeing her Taicho romantically until he got bored of her and dumped her. She would then resign and move to another division. The third option seemed like the one her heart wanted to follow, especially after the previous night. Nanao could feel the ache between her legs from the strenuous activities from last night, it made her blush. However, following that path would lead to heartbreak and humiliation so that was out of the question. The second option seemed like the one she would most likely do. Leaving the eight was out of the question because it was her home. But Nanao knew that it would kill her inside to work alongside her Taicho knowing that she had slept with him. It seemed that leaving the eight was her only options.

"You are thinking too loud Nanao-Chan"

Startled Nanao looked around and saw Shunsui standing in the doorway wearing nothing put a pair of low riding hakama. He looked like sin with his chiselled chest bathed in moonlight and his hair hanging loosely from his ponytail.

"I-I-I", stuttered Nanao unable to form a sentence.

Slowly Shunsui walked towards Nanao until he was standing right in front of her. "Do you regret last night Nanao-Chan?" he asked.

"I-I-I…No, well I don't know", sighed Nanao looking away from Shunsui.

Shunsui extended his hands and gently lifted Nanao's face so she looked at him in the eyes. "What is the matter Nanao?"

There was a long silence. "Why?" asked Nanao in a small voice. "Why do you pursue me? What do you see in me? And why do you claim that you love me when I all reality you only want to claim me".

Shunsui looked shocked at Nanao's words. Did she really think so low of herself? "Is that really what you think Nanao?" Nanao could not answer; this conversation was too intimate for her liking. With a sign Shunsui grabbed Nanao's hand and led her to his sofa and gently sat her down.

"Nanao, I love you because…" Shunsui paused to think for a moment, "because you are everything to me. You have your own opinions and you are not afraid to express them. You are not a fake, unlike all the other girls that I have been with. You seek to challenge me and I love that about you. You are fiercely intelligent and whenever I speak with you it is like a breath of fresh air. You are a daring, challenging and beautiful woman, one who I am honour to spend time with. I love you for you and not because I see as some trophy. I want to be with you because I want to be with you. Also when I am with you I get the feeling that you to be around me because of me and not because of my title or reputation. You are different from all the other girls because you like me and not my position, which is why I love you. Nanao…", Shunsui gently took her hand in his, "I love you and I always will." Shunsui saw that there were tears in Nanao's eyes, "please Nanao don't cry". Suddenly Nanao was scrambling into his lap and wrapping her hands around his neck. Shunsui's word had been the most beautiful words she had ever heard. I small voice in her head said that I could be lying just to sleep with her again but Nanao knew that that was not true. He had declared his love for her and she was going to believe him no matter what the consequences were. Sometimes you have to take risks for the people you love and she was taking a huge risk trusting Shunsui with her love.

"I love you Nanao" whispered Shunsui

"I think I love you" replied Nanao in a small voice.

"Tell me what your heart thinks and not what your head thinks Nanao"

Nanao paused and listened to her heart. Shunsui looked down at Nanao and waited, not daring to breath. Suddenly Nana's lips were on his, kissing him deeply, full of passion and love. She may not have said that she loved him but her actions confirmed it. With a groan Shunsui deepened the kiss, his hand cupping Nanao's cheek. It was a bitter sweet moment and Nanao thought her heart would explode with happiness. She could feel Shunsui free hand wander down her body to cup her centre. He was stopped however after he heart he groan of pain.

"Nanao?"

"I am a little sore down there" whispered a blushing Nanao. Shunsui stopped and then laughed.

"Oh my dear Nanao-Chan this news makes me feel so happy" laughed Shunsui.

"Taicho, I am merely stating that I am sore. I did not mean to stoke your already enlarged ego" said Nanao with a hint of frustration.

"Please Nanao call me Shunsui. And Nanao, you are more than welcome to stoke any part of me you desire. But there are certain areas on me that I desire you to stoke more than others", said Shunsui with a devilish glint in his eyes. Nanao sighed, this man was insufferable and yet she could not help but smile.

With an equal smile, Shunsui captured Nanao lips with his and kissed her again.

"I promise to be gentle this time", whisper Shunsui against her lips.

"You don't have to be Shunsui; I rather liked it when you lost control"

Shunsui smiled against Nanao's lips, "Oh my dear Nanao, you are too tempting. But this time I want to take it slow and really enjoy the moment". And slowly Nanao was lost in the moment, loving the way his lips gently, but passionately kissed her and how his hands ran up and down her body, worshiping it. And when they finally joined Nanao sighed, loving the way Shunsui made her feel special with every thrust and kiss. Nanao felt secure and loved by Shunsui because it does not matter how fast you made love, it was the meaning behind every touch that mattered. Nanao knew that Shunsui would not leave her because he meant every touch and word he whispered during their love making. And when Nanao came she thought she was going to die from the sweetness of the moment. She loved Shunsui and Shunsui loved her back.

Valentine's Day was her favourite day now.

The End.