Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, because I'm not Kubo-sensei. The bleach I own keeps my whites white.

Hitsugaya Rangiku screamed, her hand gripping her husband's until he swore the individual bones were grinding together. "Breathe, Rangiku."

"Don't you dare tell me to breathe, Toushiro," she growled out, strawberry-blonde hair sticking to her forehead in limp strands. "You get up here and try to pass a watermelon through your penis before you tell me to breathe. Damn it, I want an epidural!" she wailed.

"You know we came here too late," the white-haired man reminded her, pointedly ignoring the awful image she'd planted in his head. He was trying to be brave, but it was terrifying to see the woman he loved go through so much pain. Why hadn't he listened to Shunsui when the older man had tried to tell him about this?

Oh yes. Because he thought he hadn't needed his advice. Hitsugaya Toushiro was a genius – he could handle anything the world threw at him.

Except childbirth.

Rangiku screamed again.

"Push, Hitsugaya-san!" one of the nurses was saying. "Only a few more!"

Panting, Rangiku complied before muttering out of the corner of her mouth, "I swear, Toushiro, if you so much as look at me after this I will personally castrate you – AHHHH!!!"

He was trying desperately not to turn green. "Right."

"Don't you dare pass out! I don't have the luxury of passing out, so you damn well do not-" With one last cry, she collapsed back onto the bed. A new wail pierced the air.

"And here's your girl!" the obstetrician proclaimed. "Hitsugaya-san, would you like to cut the cord?" she asked, nodding at Toushiro.

Smoothing the hair back from his wife's forehead, he smiled softly. "Good work, Rangiku," he murmured. "Rest a bit."

She sighed wearily and closed her eyes, a corner of her mouth tilting up.

Soon, Toushiro found himself cradling the precious bundle in his arms. She was a tiny miracle, her mop of white hair hidden beneath the little knit cap. She squirmed, hiccupped, and opened her eyes, revealing that she had also inherited her father's rare blue-green eyes. They stared at each other for a good while, and he felt his heart blossom like a flower turning to the sun.

He had been perfectly prepared to love their child no matter what, but he hadn't known that his heart had that kind of capacity for love. Before this day, he would have told anyone that loving Rangiku took up all of his heart and soul, but as he looked into the eyes so very much like his own, he knew that he had been wrong. Loving these two women took up all of his heart and soul, and he had no problem with that.

"She's so beautiful," Rangiku breathed when he handed her the baby. She pressed her nose to her daughter's head, laughing softly as a tiny fist gripped one of her fingers. She pouted. "She looks like you."

Toushiro just laughed. "What will we name her?"

Rangiku's gaze drifted to the window. Outside, the trees were magnificent: a riot of crimson and gold. "Aki."

"Aki? Autumn?"

"Yes." She kissed her daughter's head. "Remember that four seasons song? The person that autumn – Aki – loves is a matured person."

"Ever the romantic." He wasn't quite sure if he understood his wife's logic, but it was a beautiful name.

"You love that I'm a romantic," she teased.

"I love you," he corrected, and leaned down to kiss her.

A few days later Aki received her first visitors.

"Congratulations Toushiro!" Shunsui said genially, clapping the younger man on the back. "She's beautiful – and I do mean both of your ladies," he added.

Rangiku sat on the bed holding Aki, and she positively glowed. Her cheeks were flushed rosy red, her hair gleamed gold in the sunlight, and her eyes seemed brighter than ever. Toushiro had to agree. Even now, he was still in awe of the fact that she had chosen him. "Thank you, Shunsui-san," he said quietly. "Halu looks well," he added.

Shunsui flushed with pride. "My boy is perfect," he declared, smiling at Nanao, who was perched next to Matsumoto on the bed, holding their one-year-old son, Kyouraku Halu – spring, for the season in which he'd come into the world, as well as the season his father loved best. Halu was currently more content to gaze off into space than pay attention to the newborn so close to him – his mother was holding him, and he was fine with that.

"We'll have to arrange play dates, Nanao," Rangiku was saying, speaking softly so that she wouldn't wake her sleeping daughter.

Nanao brushed her fingers over the tuft of white hair. "Rangiku, I think Aki's a bit too young for play dates at the moment." Her tone was dry.

"I know, I'm just saying that in the future-" she cut herself off as Aki stirred, her face scrunching up as she let out a soft little cry. Halu turned his head, finally interested. His forehead creased in an expression very similar to his mother's as he observed the wailing bundle.

Rangiku was about to hand Aki to her father when she saw movement out of the corner of her eyes. "Wait," she said, both to her husband and Nanao, as Halu reached a chubby hand out to Aki. She wanted to see what would happen.

Halu, his brow now scrunched in concentration, gently took a waving fist in his hand. Aki, sensing the new and completely alien touch, stopped crying for one moment, taking the time to open her eyes. Searing blue-green collided with soft chocolate. The two regarded each other for a moment. Their parents held their breath.

Finally, Aki hiccupped, closed her eyes, and fell asleep once more. Halu, apparently satisfied, fell asleep as well.

Rangiku's eyes filled with tears. "How beautiful!" she whispered.

Nanao and Toushiro looked at her, alarmed. "Rangiku-"

"-please don't go planning the wedding just yet, for heaven's sake!"

Shunsui perked up. "A wedding! What a wonderful idea-"

Nanao threw her purse at him.

Six months later

"They're so cute together," Rangiku said, pursing her lips and cooing at the two toddlers together in the playpen.

Nanao sighed. "You know that I would never dream of not raising our children together, Rangiku, but sometimes I worry. Halu is shy, and Aki-"

"-definitely isn't?"

"Yes. She may look like Toushiro-san, but she already acts just like you." She winced as Aki grabbed Halu's hand and began gnawing on his fingers. The little boy whimpered and tried to get away, looking up at his mother beseechingly. It said a lot about him, though, that he didn't just yank his fingers out of Aki's mouth.

"So well-behaved," Rangiku marveled, replacing Halu's hand with a teething toy. "I could say the same for you, Nanao. Your son may look like Shunsui, but he definitely acts like you." She stroked his hair, which was growing into masses of chocolate-brown curls. "Is it too soon to teach them to dance?"

"Rangiku, Aki can't even crawl yet."

"So? It's never too early."

"In this case, I think it is. Come on, show me whatever it is you have to show me."

"Oh Nanao, you'll love the sketches, and I've already made patterns-"

The black-haired woman rolled her eyes as she was pulled into the other room.

Later on during the day, a harried Rangiku was carrying her crying daughter, cursing softly under her breath as she went through room after room in the studio. She didn't see the other person in the hallway until strong hands caught her arms, preventing a collision.

"Shit," she said eloquently, then looked up and blanched. "Kuchiki-san! I'm sorry," she offered lamely.

The nobleman looked down at her impassively. "Your daughter seems distressed, Hitsugaya-san," he observed.

Rangiku stared. Was he joking? "Ah, yes, she is. I think it's because she's started teething. I'm looking for Toushiro, but he seems to have disappeared and Aki has a doctor's appointment, but Aki is-" She brightened. "Kuchiki-san, could you please hold Aki while I look for her father? Toushiro's probably on the fire escape again and I don't want to take Aki out there, thank you!"

And before he could protest or say that he could go find Hitsugaya Toushiro, Kuchiki Byakuya found himself with an armful of wailing baby.

Byakuya stared. Her face was red and wrinkled, her eyes so tightly shut that he could not see the distinct eyes she'd inherited from her father. Her little fists waved in the air as she positively screamed.

Now he felt helpless and could not help but resent Rangiku a little bit. He was not good with children. Though with Hisana-

He shut his eyes and pushed back the pain for what could have been. Children or not, he was holding one right now, and he had to try and get her to stop crying. Carefully, he shifted the toddler in his arms until her face was on his shoulder and his hand was soothingly rubbing her back. He recoiled, trying not to think about the drool that was getting onto his Italian suit.

As if the change in position alerted Aki to the fact that this was a new person, the cries got smaller and smaller until the only sounds in the hallway were little hiccupping breaths. Byakuya pulled away slightly to find her eyes were open, wide, blue-green, and wondering as they stared into his own. They regarded each other for a moment, him wary and her curious.

Then she smiled a toothless, gummy smile, burbled happily, and grabbed his hair.

Despite the pain, Kuchiki Byakuya fell hopelessly in love.

Rangiku skittered into the hallway, with Toushiro walking sedately behind her. "I'm so sorry Kuchiki-san," she began, and stopped dead, ice-blue eyes blinking. Her daughter was pulling on Kuchiki Byakuya's hair. And he was…smiling.

A light bulb went off in her head. "Kuchiki-san," she said, keeping the amusement out of her voice. "How do you feel about babysitting?"

"How on earth did you manage to wrangle Kuchiki Byakuya into baby-sitting Aki?" Nanao asked over dinner.

"The woman's a mad genius," Toushiro muttered.

Rangiku laughed. "I have a feeling that when it comes to Aki, Byakuya will do anything. You didn't see what I saw – she just smiled at him and he turned into a puddle of goo." She shook her head while she buttered a roll. "She has him wrapped around her cute little fingers."

"Aki-chan will have a lot of people wrapped around her fingers." Shunsui glanced at Toushiro. "Just wait a few years, and you'll have boys banging on your door."

"Like hell," was the teal-eyed man's retort. "They have to get through me first."

"Don't worry, Toushiro-san." Nanao dabbed at the corner of her mouth with a cloth napkin. "You have years before you have to worry about the way she flutters her eyelashes at people." She grinned at her best friend.

He glared sourly at his wife. "I wonder where she got it." In response, Rangiku made doe eyes back at him. His glare grew in intensity – until he sighed, gave up, and took her hand in his, bringing it up to his lips in an uncharacteristic public display of affection. Rangiku melted.

Shunsui leaned over to Nanao. "He gets that from me, doesn't he, Nanao-chan?"

"You wish." The table exploded with laughter.

Shunsui turned pink. "Anyway, let's just enjoy a nice dinner out, shall we? It's on me."

Six months later

Rangiku stared at the giant pile of gifts, slack-jawed. "Ah…arigato, Kuchiki-san," she said faintly. "You didn't have to buy so many presents…I mean, I'm sure Aki will love them!"

Nanao cleverly disguised her snicker as a cough. Kuchiki Byakuya looked impassive as usual, though his cheeks were stained light red. "Perhaps I did go overboard," he admitted.

"Nonsense, Kuchiki-san," Nanao said, taking charge of the situation. "We all know you love Aki. Why don't you let us put these with the other gifts while you greet the birthday girl?" The nobleman nodded and quickly left the room, eager to get out of Rangiku's presence and to see her daughter. As soon as he was out of hearing range, Rangiku burst into peals of laughter.

"Oh, Nanao!" she choked, leaning against the wall. "This is too good!"

"It looks like you won't have to buy Aki a thing for the next year," her best friend deadpanned as she tried nudging a box that was almost as big as she was through the door and into the next room.

"That's my girl," Rangiku said proudly, wiping her eyes. "She's made a slave for life."

In another part of the house, Shunsui and Toushiro stood together as they watched Byakuya "walk" a wobbly-legged Aki around the backyard. "It's taking Rangiku an awfully long time to put away his gift," Toushiro observed.

Shunsui chuckled. "If I know Byakuya, he probably cleaned out an entire store for Aki's birthday. Right, Halu?" he crooned down at his son, who was clutching his hand. Halu looked up at his father and blinked solemnly.

"Aki," the boy said plainly.

"Do you want to go see Aki-chan?" Shunsui asked. Halu shoved his fingers in his mouth and nodded. "All right, go on then!" Halu turned and began walking towards Byakuya and Aki, his gait already steady.

Toushiro winced as Byakuya swooped in and prevented Aki from chewing on the tablecloth. "I envy you sometimes, Shunsui-san."

"How so?"

"Halu never seems to be as rambunctious as Aki is. It seems all Rangiku and I do is run after her. I think our reflexes have gotten better."

"Ah, let me guess. You see her reaching for something she shouldn't and you lunge to get either she or it out of the way." The older man grinned. "Halu can be just as mischievous as he wants to. However, his mother has this way of simply looking at him and he stops. It's a marvelous thing."

Toushiro hid a smile. That look did wonders for Halu's father, as well. "Well, perhaps he will be a good influence on Aki."

A happy squeal cut through the air, followed by wailing. The two men exchanged a look and were off: Shunsui to rescue Halu, who had a face full of cake and was not happy about it, and Toushiro to get Aki, whose hands were smeared with cake and were currently all over Byakuya's designer suit.

Fatherhood was certainly an experience.

Four years later

"Kaa-san!" The shriek echoed throughout the studio and had multiple pairs of feet thumping frantically to the room that had been designated the kiddy daycare room.

"What is it?" Rangiku and Nanao said at the same time, with Isane and Nemu on their heels.

Five-year-old Hitsugaya Aki stomped her foot. "Halu's being stupid! And boring!"

Six-year-old Kyouraku Halu sighed. "Kaa-san, tell her that she can't do a cartwheel in the middle of a routine!" he complained, pushing his glasses up.

"Why can't I? It makes it more fun!" she huffed, her pout eerily similar to her mother's.

"Humph." He glared and refused to reply.

"Kawaii!" Rangiku squealed. Nanao rolled her eyes.

"Aki," the black-haired woman said, kneeling in front of the girl. "Halu is right. Dancing does have rules and you can't just change them to suit you. However," she continued when Aki's lower lip stuck out mutinously. "If you do a freestyle routine, you can do anything you want." In the doorway, Isane and Nemu chuckled softly and left the room, having checked on their own children.

Blue-green eyes went thoughtful. "Even cartwheels?" she said hopefully.

"Even cartwheels," Nanao laughed.

Halu grumbled. Rangiku bounded over and wrapped her arms around the serious little boy, subjecting him to one of her infamous hugs.

"Rangiku, kindly put my son down," Nanao said dryly as her son turned beet red and tried to escape, crying, "Kaa-san, save me! Rangiku-ba-chan is being gross again!" Aki gleefully joined the fray, loving the game of "harass Halu."

Nanao turned to the pink-haired teenager who was watching the entire scene with a good-humored smile on her lips. "No luck diffusing the fight, Yachiru?" she queried.

Yachiru shrugged. "I almost had it, you know. I was about to mention freestyle, but then Aki screamed and I knew you'd handle it better."

"How do you like teaching them?"

"I'm exhausted," she laughed. It was clear she meant the opposite. The day Yachiru ran out of energy was the day the sky turned as pink as her hair. "Halu is a sixty-year-old man in a six-year-old body. He just looks at me sometimes and I feel dumb. And Aki…Aki's like me!"

"Now you know how we felt when you were that age," Rangiku draped an arm around Yachiru's shoulders. "You and Aki are very similar. I don't know what your father would have done if Nanao hadn't offered to start teaching you when you were four – much like the way you're teaching Aki and Halu now."

"I guess I should thank you both, then." She grinned, and the impishness in the curve of her lips indicated that even though she'd gotten older, she hadn't necessarily grown up. "Anyway, I love teaching them. Thanks for the help!" She bounded over to Aki and Halu, cheerfully saying, "Okay, today's new lesson is proper cartwheels!"

Two Years Later

"Halu, there you are! I've been looking for you!"

Halu glanced down from his perch on the railing. He offered a hand as Aki clambered up beside him. "It's noisy inside."

"Silly, it's Ikkaku-ji and Kiyone-ba's wedding! Of course it's noisy!" She paused. "Halu, what does getting married mean, anyway?"

The boy glanced over his shoulder at the crowd inside the ballroom, his eyes narrowed contemplatively. "Kaa-san said it's when two people really like each other and live together for the rest of their lives."

"Oh." Her brow furrowed as she thought about it. "Halu, does that mean we're going to get married, too? I mean, we really like each other."

"Maybe we will," he said pensively. He really did like Aki – she was his best friend, after all. They liked all of the same things, especially ballroom dancing. "But not right now. We're really young."

"Yeah, and Ikkaku-ji and Kiyone-ba are really old!" Aki laughed. "But we should make a promise, ne Halu? That we'll get married when we're older?"

"Okay." He scooted around to face her on the railing. He smiled as he got a look at her. She'd already spilled something on her frilly dress, and her hair was falling out of the ponytail her mother had tied it in. His little tux, on the other hand, was still impeccably neat. "We'll get married."

Aki beamed. "All right then. We need to seal the promise with a kiss!"

Before Halu could protest, she leaned forward and touched her lips to his for one brief second. They both jerked back and stared at each other.

"Ew!" Aki wailed, the promise forgotten in light of this new development. "Now I have cooties!"

Halu retrieved a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his lips. "Gross."

"Aki! Halu! Come back inside, it's getting cold!" Nanao called from the doorway.

"Coming!" the two kids chorused, getting down from the railing and giving each other disgusted looks.

In four years, the dancing partnership of Kyouraku Halu and Hitsugaya Aki was in full swing. The two gifted youngsters had several youth titles under their belts and it was only a matter of time before they surpassed their parents.

Halu was already his father in miniature, from his poetic eyes to the curly brown hair that hung down his back. But it was his mother he took after in personality. He was cool, controlled, and mature beyond his years. Like his mother, he wore thin wire-frame glasses, and woe to anyone who made him angry enough to take them off. But he had his father's sensitive, caring heart and gave to others without a second's thought.

Aki was a physical carbon copy of her father and had inherited his determination and strength. But for the most part, she was Rangiku, from her bubbly personality to her wide-open, engaging grin. She was outgoing, confident, friendly, and possessing of a heart that rivaled her mother's. She was Halu's opposite in almost every way and yet they were the best of friends – just like their mothers.

However, today was not going to be one of those days.

"It's not working, Halu!"

Halu spun her out of hold. "Perhaps it would work if you actually concentrated, Aki." His words usually had no effect on her – normally she would laugh and continue on and they would practice until everything was perfect. But today, she turned on him, turquoise eyes snapping.

"Maybe if you stopped being pa-pa-patr-" she struggled for the word.

"Patronizing?"

"Yeah, that!" she shouted, bristling. Everything seemed to irritate her these days, and she didn't know why. "Don't look at me like that, Halu! Maybe I could concentrate if you actually helped me instead of acting like a butthead!"

Now he was just baffled. It looked like she was about to start crying, and Aki never cried. "Aki, I –"

"Oh, just stop it!" she shrieked before running from the studio.

Halu turned to Unohana, completely at a loss. "What did I do, Retsu-ba-chan?"

Unohana was fighting a grin. Aki's moods had been erratic lately, and she knew exactly why – she was a doctor and a woman, after all. "I think Aki's going through some…changes, Halu. They're making her act differently, but don't worry. She'll be fine."

Halu wasn't Nanao's son for nothing. After a minute or two, his brow cleared. "Oh. She's-" he turned a little green.

Sure enough, soon Aki streaked back into the studio, white with terror. "Retsu-ba-chan! I'm dying; I'm bleeding-" She collapsed into Unohana's arms, sobbing.

"There, there, Aki-chan. Let's just go over to the bathroom for a while, shall we? We'll have a talk." She smiled at Halu. "You can occupy yourself, can't you, Halu-kun?" She propelled a sniffling Aki out of the door, making soothing noises.

"Yes, Retsu-ba-chan." Halu settled on the window seat, propping his chin on his knees. His mother had explained the differences in boys and girls to him two years before, when he grew insecure about the fact that Aki was starting to grow taller than him. Luckily, he was catching up pretty fast, though he was now at the stage where his voice was beginning to crack – a source of endless amusement for Aki.

Halu frowned. Normally he didn't mind Aki's poking and prodding. He just ignored it. That was the way his mother and Rangiku-ba were and he knew how very similar his friendship with Aki was to theirs. But lately things were starting to change. He couldn't quite place it, but something about her was throwing him off balance lately. He wasn't quite comfortable around her, which was ridiculous because it was Aki. She was his best friend; it had been that way for years. He knew her inside and out, the same way she knew him.

Meanwhile, in the women's locker room, Aki was absorbing Unohana's lecture. "I understand, Retsu-ba-chan," she said. "I can see why tou-san and kaa-san would have wanted you to tell me." She beamed. "Tou-san would be too embarrassed and kaa-san wouldn't be able to get to the point."

Unohana laughed. "Indeed you're right, Aki-chan. Do you have any questions?"

The eleven-year-old shook her head, her white ponytail whipping around her face. "Nope! You explained everything."

"Good." She stood up. "Now, are you up to going back to practice?"

"With Halu the butthead?" Aki made a face. "I guess."

The older woman laughed. "You may change your mind in a few years, Aki."

"Ew, about Halu? No way!" But when they walked back into the studio, she regarded her partner with a considering eye.

Halu brushed an invisible speck of dust off his pants. "Are you ready to dance now?" His voice was dry and expectant, but his brown eyes were concerned. A tiny quirk of the eyebrow asked her if she was all right.

She smiled cheekily at him, throwing in a wink for good measure. "If you're asking if I'm going to dance in circles around you, Halu, then the answer is yes."

"Troublesome," he muttered with a roll of his eyes, but as she put her hand in his, she saw the almost imperceptible loosening of his shoulders that signaled his relief.

Unohana smiled inwardly. It was probably time for her to make a contribution to the betting pool.

Six years later

"Happy Valentine's Day, Halu!" Aki chirped, skipping into the studio.

Halu grunted and muttered something like, "I hate Valentine's Day."

She grinned mischievously. "Aw, what's wrong, Halu? Did you get a lot of chocolates today? You know that means you have to return the favor on White Day!"

"Exactly," he groused.

"You are in a bad mood," she observed. "How much chocolate did you get?"

"Enough to keep Yachiru-nee-san fully occupied for the next few hours."

Aki's jaw dropped. "Are you serious? That's kind of obscene!" Yet, looking at him, she wasn't surprised. Halu was gorgeous. He'd inherited his father's strong, sensitive features. His looks, when combined with his mother's aloof and polite personality, were an irresistible combination.

No one knew that better than Aki. Even though he was her best and oldest friend, she wasn't blind. He was attractive, but that wasn't what really drew her. Halu was her balance, her other half. He was a source of constant strength and grounding, always there when she needed him. Even though she was sixteen, she knew herself well enough to know that she would never want anyone the way she wanted Halu.

To be honest, she was jealous that he'd gotten so much chocolate. It meant that she had that much more competition.

"It is obscene," he agreed, adjusting his glasses. He glanced at her. "Did you make chocolate for anyone, Aki?"

The white-haired girl shook herself out of her reverie. "As a matter of fact, I did!" She'd made a small chocolate for each of her "uncles" at 8/13.

His expression darkened imperceptibly. "Did you?"

"Of course!" She hesitated slightly, the decided it was best to get it over with. "Though it will probably amount to nothing more than a hill of beans compared to your stash." She dug a plain white box out of her messenger bag and handed it to him, kissing him on the cheek.

"I like beans," Halu said, masking his surprise. He opened the box to find a single large piece of chocolate with four distinct colors swirled together, from white chocolate to a warm caramel brown to the darker brown of milk chocolate to the near blackness of dark chocolate.

"It's kind of a symbol of us, Halu," she explained, fighting back a blush. "Spring and fall. We might be separated," she said, indicating the white chocolate and the dark chocolate that were on opposite sides of the confection. "But we'll always be connected." She pointed to where they swirled together at the center. "Cheesy, I know, but-"

He put an arm around her and hugged her close, trying to keep his breath from catching. "It's great." He kissed her hair. "Thanks."

Shunsui felt like a voyeur, catching his son and his future daughter-in-law in such a moment. But some things could not be helped. Besides, he enjoyed catching them like that. It just meant he was that much closer to having grandchildren to spoil. "Happy Valentine's Day, ducklings!" he sang, pushing the door open with a bang.

Halu scowled at his father. Aki beamed. "The same to you, Shunsui-ji!" She pulled out a smaller box. "This is for you!"

"How lovely, Aki-chan!" Shunsui gifted her with a smile that was just as blinding. Yes, Aki was the perfect woman for his son. "I love receiving chocolates from beautiful women!"

"Tou-san, is there a reason why you're here?"

"My son is so cruel!" he proclaimed overdramatically. "But yes, I am here for a reason. I've been talking it over with Ran-chan, and we both agreed that you two are ready to start the Argentine tango."

Aki's jaw dropped. "But-but-but…that's like having sex on the dance floor!"

"Aki, we're both adults and it's just a dance." Halu looked bored, but his insides were in turmoil. The Argentine tango wasn't as wholly sexual as the rumba in terms of technique, but the attitude of the dance was much more adult. When they danced the rumba for competitions, they always erred towards the more innocent side of the "dance of love." There was nothing innocent about the Argentine tango.

"Oh my son, I'm so proud of you!" Shunsui sobbed, launching himself at him. "I knew you were a chivalrous man who would never threaten Aki-chan's honor!"

But what if I want him to do that? Aki thought sourly. She couldn't be blamed for her actions, especially if she ended up jumping him in the middle of a routine.

"Tou-san, stop it, you're embarrassing." Halu pushed his father away gently but firmly.

A gloom settled over the 8/13 owner. "So cold, so cruel, my son!" he cried. "Just like your mother!"

Halu rolled his eyes. He loved his father, truly, for Kyouraku Shunsui was an easy man to love. That did not stop him from being infuriating. Luckily, he had his mother's behavior as a model, since she was the only one short of Jyuushiro-ji who could keep him in line. "The dance, tou-san?" he prompted.

"Of course." Shunsui instantly went into teaching mode. Halu appreciated that aspect, not only in his father, but also his mother, Aki's parents, and the other teachers at 8/13. At the end of the day, they were family, but in the studio, they were teachers. "By the way, Toushiro and I will be switching off with this dance. Now, the hold-"

Halu blanched. Teacher or not, there was no telling how Hitsugaya Toushiro would react to seeing him dance the Argentine tango with his precious daughter.

Toushiro thought he was doing a good job of teaching Aki and Halu the Argentine tango, all things considered. He had to admit that he'd hit the roof when Rangiku brought up the subject of teaching them that dance, but could anyone blame him? He didn't want anyone's hands on Aki in that way, even if it was Halu. But Rangiku had put her foot down. Years of experience taught him that when she was that bull-headed, there was no room for change, only compromise. The only way he could compromise was to help teach them himself.

But how could he approach this next part? They had the steps; that was only to be expected. The most basic steps of the Argentine tango were slow, walking steps, similar to the traditional tango. Aki and Halu had progressed to the more difficult moves in a week. Their technique was flawless.

"Stop." He looked at them, forcing himself to see them as yet another student couple. "You two are holding back, and I understand why. This dance is more adult than anything you two have ever done and you are afraid to give in to it emotionally, especially in front of your parents."

Halu nodded. No matter how much he tried to deny it, the fact remained that he was a hormonal teenager. He'd been noticing Aki since he was thirteen. She was beautiful, to be sure, but she was so much more than that. He loved her life and her humor, so entirely different from his own. He'd suppressed those feelings to the best of his ability, but the Argentine tango had an annoying way of bringing them to the forefront.

It didn't help that she was his best friend. He shouldn't be feeling this way about her!

Aki blushed. Her father had an uncanny knack of reading her mind. Her first impression was right: dancing the Argentine tango with Halu was a mistake. As each lesson wore on, her control eroded as well. The plain truth was that she wanted to jump him, but she held herself back so that she wouldn't. She also didn't want her father to kill Halu for something that was her doing, for surely he didn't feel the same way.

She pouted. Sometimes she wondered if Halu even knew she was a girl. The arms that had been wrapped around her were as impersonal as a doctor's.

"As wonderful as your technique is, you have to have the emotion as well," Toushiro continued. "El tango no está en los pies. Está en el corazón. Tango is not in the feet. It is in the heart." He paused. "That's enough for me for today. I want you two to keep practicing. We'll see how you do tomorrow."

Toushiro fought every fatherly instinct he had to not leave the studio but he forced himself to go. He had just given them permission to explode, whether they knew it or not. He could only hope that if they did, they had the decency to tone it down tomorrow. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "This sucks," he said petulantly, forgetting the fact that he was in his forties and far too old to be pouting.

"Your father is right," Halu remarked after Toushiro-ji left. His breath stirred some of the strands that had come loose from Aki's bun. She suppressed a shudder. "We've never held back before – why should we do so now?"

Because I am a hormonal teenage girl who cannot be held accountable for her actions, Aki wanted to say. But instead, she looked up at him and grinned. "I guess we'd better fix that, then."

His right hand closed on her back in response, pulling her close. She stopped him with a firm hand on his bicep. "Not so close, cowboy," she said coyly.

Some indeterminate emotion flashed in Halu's eyes – something hot and searing that drove all the breath from her lungs. "We'll see about that," he responded.

The Argentine tango was a dance of oppositions. It was hard and soft, fast and slow, dominant and submissive, full of love and hate. For every action there was an equal and opposite reaction. Every time he moved into her space, she countered by moving away. She beckoned, he came. He pushed, she pulled.

There were about six inches between them in their hold, but due to their connection, it seemed like they were one entity. Every breath was shared and it seemed as though their hearts beat to the same driving rhythm.

Aki's breath hissed out of her when he dipped her, his hand making a small pass from her shoulder blade to her stomach and back. That caress only covered a small area, but every nerve in her body seemed to have felt it. She was snapped back up and her left hand barely had time to stroke his hair before they were back in hold.

Halu used every ounce of strength he had to keep himself firmly in control, but everything she was threatened to overwhelm him. She was defiant and passionate, meeting him as defiantly and passionately as a raging storm meets a mountain range. And he wondered dimly, if the mountains would give under that pressure.

As suddenly as the dance started, it stopped. The two teenagers stared into each other's eyes, Aki and Halu once more.

Oh kami, was all Aki could think. Every instinct she had screamed to latch onto Halu and never let go. She clamped a lid down on her hormones and grinned. "Hot damn," she exclaimed, slapping her best friend on the back. "That was freaking awesome, Halu, I didn't know you had it in you!" She bounced back on her heels, her eyes sparkling.

Halu blinked, desperately trying to clear the fog that had settled over his brain. "Thanks…I think."

"Oh, you know it was a compliment," was the blithe reply. "I think tou-san will be very happy tomorrow. Oh, look at the time! I think Bya-kun is expecting me. Ja ne!"

She was out the door before Halu could say another word. The teenager removed his glasses and wiped them, as he always did when he was in need of a particular degree of calm. "Nuts," he muttered.

Kuchiki Byakuya watched with thinly veiled amusement and exasperation as Aki bounced around his office, poking her nose into every nook and cranny as if she'd never been there before. She had sailed into the office thirty minutes earlier, to the long-suffering protests of his secretary (who really should have been used to this kind of thing by now). Aki hadn't stopped moving ever since.

He hid a grin behind his hand. He truly loved Aki like she was his own daughter. Even with the arrival of Rukia and Ichigo's children – the twins Masahiro and Hisana, whom he doted on – there was something about the daughter of Hitsugaya Toushiro and Rangiku that pulled at his heartstrings. Of course, he would never admit this, though his feelings were transparent enough to the population of the 8/13 studio.

This did not mean that Aki could not drive him to distraction. The monthly reports for the Kuchiki Corporation were very important, but her hyperactivity was preventing him from reading them. He pressed the intercom button. "Secretary Mao-san?"

"Hai, Kuchiki-sama?"

"Please find me a copy of last year's quarterly revenue figures, along with a highlighter."

"Hai, Kuchiki-sama. Right away."

Five minutes later, the items requested were sitting on his desk. Byakuya glanced at Aki, who was now prodding his potted plant like she'd never seen one before. "Aki-chan."

Aki jumped guiltily. "Yes?"

"I suggest you channel your boundless energy through a more useful medium than inspecting my office. The janitors will be most unhappy if they think their work is unsatisfactory." She flushed. "You can make yourself useful by looking over these revenue figures and highlighting any trends you see."

Aki picked up the file and highlighter indicated. "Trends, Bya-kun?"

"Unlike last time, I want you to find any recurring patterns rather than anomalies. Report to me when you're finished." He pointed to a chair, his lips twitching. "I expect something clear and concise, do you understand?"

"I understand," Aki said, her brow wrinkling. She curled up into a comfortable chair and began, her tongue poking out between her lips.

Byakuya shook his head. This was the third time this week Aki had ended up in his office, overflowing with a certain type of mad energy. He could only assume this was an odd side effect of her Argentine tango lessons with Kyouraku Halu. Hitsugaya-san had warned him of her daughter's almost manic energy afterwards and asked him to watch after her.

He sighed. Aki was growing up. Of course she was high-strung after the lessons – her crush on the Kyouraku heir had been growing ever since she was an adolescent. It was only a matter of time before things exploded. The best thing he could do was try and channel that energy elsewhere. The best solution just happened to be putting her to work. She was surprisingly adept at business matters. She had a shrewd and logical mind and was comfortable with the structure and logic of figures and infrastructure.

However, it was still a complete surprise when, after three months of checking Kuchiki Corp's reports (and four months of the Argentine tango), Aki went up to her parents and announced, "I don't want to be a ballroom dancer anymore. I want to run a business like Bya-kun."

AHAHAHA CLIFFIE!

I've always wanted to do that. No, this certainly is not the end of Aki and Halu's story - I realized that I could not do justice to their story in one go. Therefore, Aki and Halu's story (and the last SB installment) is going to be a two-shot. So don't worry! :D I'm still writing the next part, which is going to skip forward about three years, to when Halu will be 21 and Aki will be 20. If you're curious as to how I picture them, head over to my profile - I'll post links to my deviantart page where I've done a portrait of each of them. Please review!