Liar Liar

Christina Grimmie

Can't see you anymore,

You're in and shut the door,

Didn't know, what I'd do, no, now,

The words have been betrayed,

It was fine to let them fade,

And I just won't let you bring me down,

You can see what I'm now and I know,

Somewhere there's a sorry heart,

Tell me why, these roads keep leading,

Leading you right back, to me~

Liar Liar,

Don't cry on my shoulder,

You played with fire,

And smiled when you told her,

Oh~ Oh~

Thought you were someone,

Oh~ Oh~

Goodbye to no one~

So break away the touch,

Unless you miss so much,

But I won't tell you to come back, cos,

Emotions dissipate,

Is love designed to hate?

Keep on driving away from here.

Eye the rain,

As it falls in your hands~

Will there be another storm?

Tell me why these roads keep leading,

Leading you right back.

Liar Liar,

Don't cry on my shoulder,

You played with fire,

And smiled when you told her,

Oh~ Oh~

Thought you were someone,

Oh~ oh~

Goodbye to no one.

I don't need to know your feelings,

You're not on my mind,

I don't need to know you care,

Please don't waste my time~

Liar Liar,

Don't cry on my shoulder,

You played with fire,

And smiled when you told her.

Liar Liar,

Don't cry on my shoulder,

You played with fire,

And smiled when you told her.

Oh~ Oh~

Thought you were someone,

Oh~ Oh~

Goodbye to no one.

Oh~Oh~

Thought you were someone,

Oh~ Oh~

Goodbye to no one~

XXX

A/N: Nya I hate writing Inuoe/Ichigo cos I hate that pairing, but oh wells :/ and I LOVE Christina Grimmie 3 she sings with an accent though so I'm sorry if there are mistakes! I can't really hear the lyrics : Thanks for reading, and don't forget to leave comments for improvement :D To those who reviewed saying my format is messed up, I only just realized it after I posted, and I'm working on it :) Thank you to all my reviewers (I didn't think that I'll get reviews :3) So hope you enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, or the songs I use above.

Main pairing: Tatsuki/Grimmjow

Side pairing: Inuoe/Ichigo

Side pairing: Rukia/Renji

XXX

Tatsuki opened her eyes, blinking the sleep out of them as she slowly stretched. She was sleeping in somebody else's room, and in her usual rather violent sleep manner, had apparently mussed up all the sheets and blankets on the bed before settling into the position she had woken up in; curled up in a ball in the middle of the bed. Surprisingly, she didn't have a hangover and didn't particularly feel like throwing up, maybe due to the healing potion yesterday night that cleaned up the alcohol. She vaguely remembered somebody putting a blanket over her earlier in the morning, a guy with blue hair... Wait. Grimmjow?! She sat up immediately, surveying the room. She was in his room, judging from the suit and tie strewn across the chair opposite the bed, and a collection of real swords and daggers hung on the wall and some placed in the corners of the room, but where the room was remained to be seen. The memories of last night tugged at her mind, and she recalled everything, until she fell asleep on his shoulder... Oh. So that's why she was here in his room. Not much surprise then there. She had brought it on herself anyway. Sighing, she pulled the blanket over herself again and curled back in the warm covers when one of the two doors in the room burst open. "Oi, Arisawa, get up." It was Grimmjow, and apparently that door led to the toilet, as his hair was still wet and he had a towel wrapped around his lower body. "Don't wanna," she half-whined, suddenly enjoying the feeling of being able to complain and whine to a guy who would actually listen. At the same time, she let her eyes roam across his well chiseled torso and arms, again. "Get up, I need to change," he snapped, not really angry. Tatsuki just grinned and tore her eyes from him, choosing instead to cover her head with the blanket. "Just change here," she said, her voice muffled by the blanket. "C'mon, Arisawa, Ichigo is gonna be here soon, I need to change and hide you-" At that moment, the door was kicked open and Ichigo stood in the doorway, scowling at the arrancar. "Were you talking to yourself?" Ichigo's words were out of his mouth before he realized that Grimmjow was half-naked. At that, his face contorted into an incredulous look before he slammed the door shut again, thankfully not noticing Tatsuki under the blankets. Tatsuki stuck her head out and the two of them glanced at each other before bursting into laughter.

XXX

Finally, Grimmjow got dressed (Tatsuki buried her head under his quilt) and he decided to hide her in his closet. "I'm really feeling like Rukia suddenly..." she muttered to Grimmjow as he pushed her in. He chuckled (everybody knew the famous story of how Rukia hid in Ichigo's closet while living in Karakura town) and told her,"You can lock the the door and shower or whatever later. I'll bring your breakfast later, at around ten," he pointed at the clock. "For now, stay in the closet, cos Ichigo is here and later, after breakfast, at around ten, we're gonna train, and then he won't bother about my room anymore, so you can use it, but when other people come in for God's sake hide in the cupboard," he scowled. "Can I wear your clothes?" Tatsuki pointed at her rumpled karate training clothes (she was infinitely grateful to Grimmjow for not bothering to change her). "Whatever," he shrugged, not really caring. She flashed him a grateful smile and shut the cupboard door just before Hiyori came in and kicked the door open, yelling at Grimmjow to "get his frickin ass down to the kitchen and eat" before she makes him. Oh, so I'm in the Vizard warehouse, Tatsuki observed, sitting in the darkness of Grimmjow's closet. Grimmjow yelled something vulgar back at Hiyori that made Tatsuki cringe (followed by Hiyori matching up with something equally vulgar), and she heard his heavy footsteps and Hiyori's slipper-clad ones go down the stairs, the door shutting behind her. Tatsuki stayed still for about two minutes before moving around in the closet, finding that most of the clothes were seperated into three piles; a pile of shirts, a pile of pants and a pile of underwear, all clean. She moved around, trying to get comfortable, and all the while she could smell Grimmjow's scent in the cupboard faintly. It was musky, rather like an animal's, a panther especially. It smelled damn good to Tatsuki, and as she laid down on her back with her legs folded and her knees up, she couldn't help but wonder if all he did was train, and not do anything else, like hang out with Ichigo and the guys or the other Arrancar. He seemed to be the odd one out, like her. But unlike her, he had friends who would train with him, whereas she had only herself. Fingering a lock of her shoulder-length hair absent-mindedly, she pulled out her iPod Nano from her bag and plugged in her earbuds, putting everything on shuffle. "Meh, I need new songs, and food," she mumbled to herself in the cupboard, checking the time. 9.30 huh, she thought, deciding to take a shower and change into fresh clothes.

XXX

At 10.00 am sharp, Tatsuki heard Grimmjow's heavy footsteps up the stairs and sat up in anticipation, waiting for breakfast. She had gotten sick of waiting after having a quick five minute shower and changing into one of Grimmjow's large shirts, pulling on a pair of shorts that was stuffed in the corner (apparently too small for him) and fitting into it quite nicely. She was hungry and quite eager to just dig in to whatever he had. What she didn't expect, however, was the distinct voice of a certain orange-haired newlywed shouting after Grimmjow, going as far as to follow him up the steps. "-talking to yourself?" she could hear the end of his sentence even through the door of the closet, and he was very, very mad at Grimmjow. "Shut the hell up and f*** off!" Grimmjow yelled back, just as loud, if not even louder. Tatsuki winced as Grimmjow slammed the door shut and she could hear the lock and bolt being shut. "Here, lemme help," she hopped out of the closet and pressed her palm to the door, fortifying it with demon arts a second before the door shook violently, Ichigo apparently trying to kick it down. "If you break down that door, me and Grimmjow will frickin kill you, Baldy," Tatsuki could hear Hiyori yell from the other side of the door.

Grimmjow scowled before setting down the tray that had miraculously survived Grimmjow's sprint up the stairs, containing toast, butter, hot milk, a small bowl of porridge with shredded chicken and a slice of chocolate cake. "Okay, I'm going to train, I'll send you home later tonight. If you fall asleep early tonight, don't be surprised to wake up in your own bed tomorrow morning," he nudged the girl into his closet again, placing the tray on her lap. "Wait," Tatsuki looked at Grimmjow in the eye. "What?" he looked at her, a questioning look in his blue eyes that caught Tatsuki unawares, again. But she forced herself to concentrate and half-begged of him, "Please don't tell Ichigo." There was a desperate glint in her eyes that betrayed her mixed feelings about Grimmjow and Ichigo, and Grimmjow noticed it. Keeping his face neutral, he briefly wondered about it before scowling down at her. As he saw her anxious face, he softened slightly, his mouth twitching. "Fine, I promise, but you have to explain to me why later," he nodded tightly. "Thanks," she said softly, smiling to herself in relief. His face went back to its usual scowl and he slammed the cupboard door shut before opening it again slightly, leaving a crack to allow light into the cupboard. With that, he unlocked and unbolted the door, pulling it open, and Tatsuki heard him thunder down the stairs again, deflecting Ichigo's questions loudly with all sorts of profanities. "Oi, what I do in my bedroom doesn't concern you, bastard, so stay out of my business or I will F***IN KILL YOU," Tatsuki heard him snarl to Ichigo. What a lot of profanities, Tatsuki noted, amused. "And I saw you yesterday night. You disappeared from mid-air!" This made Tatsuki pause. So he saw Grimmjow before I made him invisible... At this Tatsuki wondered briefly whether Grimmjow would give her away or keep his promise. "I learned a few new things and made a friend," she heard him say shortly. "Who?" Ichigo seemedvery curious, odly so, and it seemed out of place, considering that he hadn't cared about her in a very, very long time. Sighing softly, she continued to dig in into her breakfast, because even Ichigo wouldn't be able to make her lose her appetite this morning, not after training with Grimmjow yesterday night and sitting around doing nothing but being hungry since 8+ am.

"Kurosaki-kun?" This voice made Tatsuki stiffen again, this time so much that she put her spoon down and and stopped to listen. "Get the frickin hell out, bitch," Grimmjow snapped at Inuoe. Tatsuki could almost imagine Inuoe's lip wobbling, her tears trembling to spill over as she cast her beautiful face down. Grinning slightly despite herself, Tatsuki leaned closer to the door and fortified it with demon arts again before putting her ear on the door, listening to the conversation. Before Ichigo or Grimmjow could say anything, Inuoe started bawling, something that Tatsuki thought was strangely uncharacteristical of her. Inuoe usually didn't cry that easily. Tatsuki peered through the crack in the cupboard to see Inuoe clutch at Ichigo's shirt as he held her to his chest protectively. "What the hell, Grimmjow!" He shouted, while Grimmjow grinned maniacally and raised a hand. "She deserved that, and she deserves this too."

Tatsuki saw his hand coming down, and for the first time in her life, didn't rush to protect Inuoe, even while she was being hit right in front of her eyes. Instead, the years flashbacked in front of her as she recalled all the times she had saved Inuoe, told everything about her to Inuoe, trusted Inuoe with everything, defended her from everything else and, above all, let her take her own crush, something that had hurt Tatsuki more than Inuoe would ever know. Grimmjow had no reason to hit her, she knew, and laughed upon the realization that Grimmjow was hitting Inuoe on her behalf. I'm indebted to him, again, she thought, smirking to herself. She wasn't jealous of Inuoe, but was angry that her best friend never thought of Tatsuki in anything she did since she got mixed into Kurosaki Ichigo's world, the world of souls, Shinigami, fighting and love.

There was a harsh, sharp sound of Grimmjow's palm hitting Inuoe's pretty, pale face, and she stopped crying for a moment, shocked out of belief by his slap. "Kurosaki Ichigo, if you knew there was someone else, would you accept her? Or would you have your eyes glued onto this pretty but absolutely useless white elephant you are holding? Open your eyes and take a good look," Grimmjow smirked, his hands by his side. "And if you want to settle this with fists... Let's do a 2-on-2. I'll bring a friend of mine, and you can have that... Thing with you. Then you'll realize what true power and shame is," Grimmjow's eyes were alight with a cold, cruel fire. Ichigo's eyes were dark too, burning with rage. "Fine. Tomorrow." He bit out the two words behind clenched teeth. "You're letting a mere mortal ruin a friendship, you know," Grimmjow chuckled, his laughter cold and arrogant. "You were never a friend to begin with," Ichigo's words slipped out of their own accord. Tatsuki felt a chill settle over her heart even as Ichigo turned and stomped away, Inuoe in his arms. Was that really Ichigo talking? Or his inner hollow? Grimmjow laughed again, a cold, cruel bark. "You were the one that said that. Don't regret it when you come crying tomorrow," he taunted, turning and entering the room again, his hand on the door to shut it in Ichigo's face again. "Wait- I didn't-" "SHUT THE F*** UP." Grimmjow's face and voice was dark, laced with anger and venom. "Tomorrow, here, at noon, and be prepared to die." Grimmjow slammed the door shut in Ichigo's face so hard that the door rattled on its hinges.

Tatsuki sat back, her appetite suddenly lost. She hopped out of the cupboard and fortified the door with demon arts again before turning to face Grimmjow, who was sitting on his bed, his scowl and aura darker than ever, icy fire dancing in his eyes. "Grimmjow?" she plopped herself next to him on the bed, tilting her head to look at him in the eye. "I think... You should know what I've been doing, and why he shouldn't know... Especially since you helped me out just now." She smiled, softly, turning away from him to look down at her lap before starting.

XXX

"Tatsuki! Kurosaki-kun agreed to be my boyfriend!"

I am stunned, first off. So he finally accepted her, but... Why don't I feel happy for her? I should be smiling, laughing, congratulating her, not standing here, feeling sick to my stomach, wanting to throw up. She deserves to have him... Doesn't she? I count myself lucky that she is talking to me on the phone during my break in the dojo, and not face-to-face with me, or she will see the sadness etched in my face. Or will she? She has been in the clouds lately since she helped Ichigo in the war, able to see him everyday. She hides this from me, the fact that they are in war in Soul Society. Everybody does that, actually. I sigh to myself, inaudibly, such that Inuoe cannot hear me over the phone. She is half-deaf, probably due to her own loud, high-pitched voice screaming all the time. I startle. Since when have I been so mean, so belittling? Especially to my best friend whom I have defended and told everything to? She has been drifting from me too, and I suspect that she will become like Ichigo too, or has already done so. They think that keeping me in the dark will protect me, and they never tell me anything anymore. I'm in the shadows. A shadow girl, on the borders. And the worst thing is, I am not the only one. Keigo and Mizuro have noticed this too, and are just as upset about being left out of the loop, if not more.

The last straw came when one day, Mizuro gets into a car accident, and although he will live through it, his left arm was fractured and he also has a mild concussion. Obviously, nothing big compared to what Ichigo has had to survive, but to us, it was pretty serious. We texted Ichigo the news, and he never replied. We were thrown to a side like rag dolls. He never bothered to come see Mizuro either. His quality of always wanting to protect his friends has not changed, I know, but his friends have changed. We're not worth protecting anymore. Keigo and Mizuro transferred out of school shortly after that, seeming to have come to the same conclusion as me.

Shadows are never seen, but they are there nonetheless. I am in every shadow cast by everybody else who have done greater things than me, and I know it.

Life passes me by, and they date for about half a year before I realize my feelings. Then, I started to keep to myself more, study more and train more.

Ichigo defeated me the day he accepted Inuoe in accordance to my promise, a long, long time ago, when all those who want Inuoe have to defeat me first. And now, I try to get stronger, rising to no.2 in the nation among all the humans, males included. On that day, I challenge Ichigo again, and he declines, saying he has no time. Sure, he has no time when I see him out with Inuoe every day, or training with Renji and Rukia. What is he training for? I briefly wonder, but then I realize that I myself am training for no reason whatsoever.

I don't smile for real much anymore. They're either faked, or they're sad smiles. And I smirk. A lot. Every time I see couples, on the train, on the street, in cafés... Couples and love are everywhere, and I feel detached from the world, sinking into a world where everything is cold and slimy, and tries to grab at me when I touch it. Friends... They left me when I became weak. So I train. My masters were different, and they accepted me. Strangely, they were similar to the Vizards, outcasts of society, shadowy, yet always there, and even if you look closely, you don't always see them. I learn new demon arts, levitation, a little bit of mind reading, and all the while I grow in speed and raw power. I learn to master my new, growing power, keep my zanpaktou on a tight leash, and to balance on the tightrope between sanity and madness.

Twenty days after I master my bankai, my masters leave, and once again, I am left to train on my own, and I carry on for six months before Ichigo and Inuoe announce their marraige.

That drove me very near to insanity. They even named me the bridesmaid, and I wonder if their purpose is to mock me unto death. I accept the dreaded job wearily, getting tired of having to pretend all the time. Being able to fake emotions seem to be the norm for me now, a trait I seem to have inherited from my masters. I swallow down the bitter lump accumulating in my throat and plaster a fake smile on my face every time I face the two of them despite the sadness welling up inside, threatening to destroy my fragile glass made of frosted glass, in which you can only see the silhouette of my thoughts flitting around in turmoil behind it. Break it apart, and I am afraid that my flood of emotions will escape. They are already leaking out through the cracks in my mask, and I wonder how I will be able to keep myself together.

Do I hate them? I honestly have no idea. I think they fit each other, but I can't help it... How I feel about Ichigo is not the heart racing kind of crush, it is a quiet, childhood love. He is like a brother, but much more. What I hate is how oblivious they are, how they are wrapped up in nothing but themselves, and me, who has been by their side at one time or another, was cast aside the moment I became weak.

I promise to myself that I will never abandom the weak. I know how it feels to not be wanted, to be left out of the circle, and never be given another second chance. All the time, there is a sickening feeling in me, and it makes me want to just collapse and fall into somebody's arms. But I don't. I forge on, tightrope walking along, where on both sides there are hands grasping at me, wanting to pull me down into the different pools; jealousy, despair, madness, death... All of the conflicting emotions are locked up in a box that I hide, somewhere deep inside, dusty and long forgotten. The box has been popping up in my mind several time lately, but I push it back down. It is getting harder and harder to supress the box and store it away, but it appears next to me, like Pandora's Jar, constantly reminding me, everywhere.

Tears threaten to flood all the time, and I have almost lost myself. The sea of hands are making me lose balance, such that I am only holding on to the rope with a single hand. Searching for a solution or way out is impossible, and I have no idea what to do anymore. There is no one I can turn to, and I can only wait to drown. With my abilities, I could kill the both of them within the hour. But I don't. And I sometimes question my own kindness. Do they deserve that? Are they really as oblivious as I thought them to be?

XXX

Tatsuki let out a long, trembling breath while Grimmjow just sat there, frowning. Not a scowl, but a frown. After a second, he shrugged. "Well, I just gave you the second chance you wanted." His statement surprised Tatsuki and she looked up at him, surprised. "What second chance?" Her confusion was evident in her tone as she blinked, still wondering about what he had said. "Fighting with Ichigo again. Fight him with me in the 2-on-2," he smirked at her, turning the sadness in her face into a smirk, the corner of her lips twitching with mirth. "Hell yeah, and anyway I owe you one. Maybe even two," she snickered, throwing herself backwards such that she was now lying on her back on his bed. He chuckled, and once again she marveled at how he could make her feel suddenly happier, his deep, throaty laugh rolling over her like velvet.

XXX

News travelled fast, and soon the whole of the Karakura Spiritually Aware population knew about the upcoming fight. As Grimmjow thundered down the stairs, Tatsuki following behind lightly, invisible to even the gigai eyes of the Vizards. "Watch it Grimmjow, where do you think you're going?" Lisa got up from reading her mangas on the couch, arms akimbo, facing Grimmjow. "Out, to train," he said shortly, his hand reaching for the doorknob. "We heard everything, why did you slap Inuoe?" she asked sternly, suddenly strict. Grimmjow grinned ferally, and his eyes flicked to Tatsuki's for a nanosecond, and Lisa noticed. "Is there somebody here... Invisible?" Her eyes darted around, trying to sense the reiatsu of the intruder, but Tatsuki already had her reiatsu tightly under control, and Lisa's eyes narrowed, but she refrained from saying anything else. Grimmjow stepped past Lisa, and Tatsuki was just as careful to avoid the other Vizards, whose eyes were all tracking Grimmjow. He opened the door and went out into the sun, Tatsuki following closely. When the door shut behind Grimmjow, the other Vizards glanced around at each other, exchanging questioning looks. "There was definitely someone there... What is Grimmjow doing?" Lisa said to nobody in particular, wondering why he was acting like that all of a sudden.

XXX

The dojo was closed when Tatsuki and Grimmjow arrived. "The instructor has gone home to visit his family," Tatsuki explained, unlocking the door and letting them in. Again, she threw Grimmjow his clothes and went to change, relishing the feel of the comfortable, worn linen of her uniform slide over her bare skin. It was one thing that hadn't changed throughout the years, despite so many other things switching from one mode to another, and Tatsuki found that she still missed the past. Even when training with her masters, she always insisted changing before training, despite how they said that a good fighter should be able to fight in anything. Some of them fought in T-shirt and jeans mostly, hiding their weapons in belts, watches, anywhere but on themselves. "You should never let your weapon be taken from you," she recalled as she slung her zanpaktou onto her back. But my best weapons are my limbs, she had replied. They had conceded to that point, but said that if her limbs were not as good as they used to be, a small knife or dagger would always be handy, if a large sword or knife was not available. Smiling softly to herself, she exited the changing rooms to find Grimmjow outside waiting again, but this time kneeling down examining a box. Tatsuki walked over and, upon seeing the box, went pale. "Did you touch any of the liquids in this?" She hurriedly asked Grimmjow, suddenly scared. "No," he shrugged, then pointed at the daggers. "The daggers are cool though," he scanned the other contents of the box. Tatsuki relaxed, and sat down next to Grimmjow, murmuring, "This was given by my masters. Each of them left me a gift in this box, and I can use them to a certain degree, though I haven't found all of each weapon's secrets yet. The liquids are either poisons or healing liquids, so don't touch them without my permission," she warned him. She pulled out the first layer of the box, revealing another layer underneath. The box contained a variety of items even though it looked very small, and had intricate carvings and even a small jewel embedded on its catch. As Tatsuki pulled out the daggers, liquids necklace, wire, knife, pocket watch and fox skin pouch, Grimmjow couldn't help but wonder; why Tatsuki's masters gave her this, who they were and what they were like, as well as the training she had received. They were an interesting collection of items, and Tatsuki explained it to him: The daggers could "abosrb" poison and healing liquids as well as water, ice, reiatsu, energy and just about anything. Some of the liquids were natural poisons, while the others were healing potions. The bottles refilled themselves, and Tatsuki didn't seem to know how it happened. The necklace was charmed and could hold belongings like weapons and supplies, while the wire was specially developed; ultra thin, ultra sharp, with high electrical and heat conductivity. It could be used as everything from a heating coil to electrical wires to rope used for binding. The knife was specially crafted and could be used as a reflective mirror, and it could also show her views from anywhere around the world, or to spy on people. The watch could turn back time, or move her forward, and the pouch could hold anything. You could even stuff a dead body in and it would fit, and pull it out again if required. "I don't really care about the mechanisms, as long as they work, and the only thing I use really regularly are the healing potions," she shrugged, closing the box. "You know how to use them, right?" Grimmjow pressed. "Yeah," she frowned as she understood Grimmjow's idea. "I don't mind teaching you how to use the daggers though," she said slowly. "And we could use the poisons... I haven't had a chance to use all of them yet," she slowly warmed up to the idea. "Well then, let's train!" Sunny Tatsuki was back, and Tatsuki realized, with a grin, that this time, her emotions weren't faked, and she didn't have to force out a smile. It was a relief to be able to finally laugh for real around sonebody, a real happy one, not a self-mocking or bitter one. She had missed laughing like that. Smiling widely, she led Grimmjow over to the center of the dojo, passing him a dagger along the way.

XXX

"I'm pretty sure there's a reason behind Grimmjow's strange behaviour," Rukia reasoned with Ichigo. She, Renji, Inuoe, Ichigo, Ishida and Chad were at the Vizard Warehouse, crowded around the dining table, all of them either sitting on the table or on assorted chairs picked up from around the house. The Vizards were silent, thinking over Grimmjow's strange behaviour earlier in the morning, and the invisible intruder whom nobody could even feel the reiatsu of. "Someone was here, this morning," Hachi said in his slow, quiet manner. "Someone?" Ichigo's brows furrowed as he thought over the implications of that. "He was very good, even being able to block his reiatsu from us, and we only know because while Grimmjow was talking to us, he glanced into air, and nobody was there," Hachi smiled slightly, albeit worriedly. "He had flawless control of his reiatsu, and was able to slip through our shields, so he is probably a force to be reckoned with," he added. "But why would Grimmjow hide him?" Renji scratched his head, puzzled. "I need some air," Inuoe announced, getting up. "Mmm... I'll go with you," Ichigo got up. "Uh... It's okay! I just wanted to meet Tatsuki-chan, maybe for some cake or something," she smiled back at Ichigo and ran out of the warehouse. The others shrugged and Ichigo sat back down, continuing their discussion on the mysterious intruder.

XXX

Halfway through training, Tatsuki heard her phone ringing from the bench, where she had been charging it. "Gimme a sec," she nodded at Grimmjow and ran over. "Inuoe?" Grimmjow could hear the surprise in Tatsuki's voice and could guess why; Inuoe probably hadn't called Tatsuki in a long, long time, and this was very sudden. Tatsuki seemed to be arguing with Inuoe over something, then put down the phone, obviously at a loss over what to do. "Inuoe wants me to meet her at a cafe, for cake," Tatsuki added, scowling. "I told her I was at the dojo, but she insisted on it. See? This is what I mean. I have to be there for them and when I need them, they disappear and I never seem to have someone to talk to." "So?" Grimmjow sheathed his zanpaktou. "I'm going, though sometimes I really doubt whether I should be so kind to someone who calls herself my best friend," she spat out the last two words disgustedly before grabbing the clothes she was wearing (aka Grimmjow's clothes) and going to change, leaving Grimmjow behind, pondering over what Tatsuki had just said.

XXX

Tatsuki sat at the cafe, tapping her feet impatiently. "She's on the other side of town," she scowled at Grimmjow after trying to find Inuoe's reiatsu. "Just pawn her already," he rolled his eyes, taking another swig of some expensive alcohol offered at the cafe. "That's going to go on Inuoe's tab," Tatsuki grinned at Grimmjow before snatching the bottle over and taking a drink herself.

Another ten minutes, a bottle of wine, two cups of coffee, half a bar of chocolate and two club sandwiches later, Tatsuki nudged Grimmjow, who immediately picked up his coffee and disappeared in a flash of sonido, just as Inuoe arrived, walking slowly to the cafe. "Hey Inuoe," Tatsuki greeted coldly. Being with Grimmjow was much more fun than having to be agony aunt to Inuoe, and Tatsuki sighed inaudibly. "Tatsuki-chan!" Inuoe plopped herself down and took a cube of Tatsuki's chocolate (which Tatsuki had put on Inuoe's tab. Technically, everything she ordered was going to be paid by Inuoe), and started off saying,"My wedding was so fun! Didn't you think so?" At those words, Tatsuki stiffened slightly, and her eyes narrowed. The only thing she liked about the wedding was drinking with Grimmjow, but she didn't say anything, just gave an noncommittal grunt. "Oh and I slept with Kurosaki-kun! He was warm, like a huge teddy bear!" Tatsuki stifled a yawn and raised her eyebrow, wondering if this was all necessary for her to endure, and how she had endured it during high school. "Oh yeah, they're discussing about an intruder in the Vizard warehouse now, they say he's good to be able to slip under the shields. But I can do that too, so am I good?" Not waiting for Tatsuki's reply, she continued,"And Grimmjow was so mean! I hope he loses to Kurosaki-kun, and Kurosaki-kun beats him up good," she smiled dreamily. This was the last straw and Tatsuki got up suddenly, with so much force that her chair fell over. "First off, there was only one thing I liked about your wedding. Secondly, I don't want to know what you do in your bedroom. Thirdly, you can enter the Vizard warehouse because the shield recognizes familiar reiatsu and the Vizards let you in. Lastly, Grimmjow will pound Ichigo's ass tomorrow. Now excuse me, I have to get back to the dojo." With that, Tatsuki grabbed her bag and left, leaving a dumbfounded Inuoe to pay for the $600 bill she and Grimmjow had left.

XXX

"Ha! Strike!" Grimmjow grinned when Tatsuki related the story to him. "You should have seen her face," Tatsuki chuckled to herself. The two of them were sitting on the dojo floor, drinking energy drinks mixed with healing potions. "Oh by the way, we're using the daggers tomorrow, right? I also have something else at my place that we could use. It's a healing pendant, I'll fill it with healing liquids and you can wear it around your neck or something. When you're injured to a certain degree, it will automatically dispense a drop of liquid to heal you. But if you get just a few small cuts and bruises, it won't dispense any, and you'll have to put up with those until you get a larger cut or more of those small ones. Oh, and it doesn't heal old wounds that well, so for example it won't heal the big one Ichigo gave you last time. I'll pass it to you tomorrow," she nodded before taking another gulp of energy drink, then vaulting up agilely, grabbing a dagger. "Let's train some more~" she pulled him up and they continued to train their use of the daggers.

By sunset, Grimmjow could utilise the daggers almost as well as Tatsuki, knowing how to switch between absorbing energy and reiatsu and releasing energy, poison and ice. For their last spar, it lasted much longer, especially with the use of the daggers. The two of them had almost equal amounts of speed and both were able to land blows on the other. "Okay, we're done!" This time, Tatsuki still won by making him kneel on the ground using karate. After healing up, the two set off in search of a bar. To drink. Again. With Grimmjow, I seem to be drinking alot again, Tatsuki thought, amused, recalling the time when she had turned to drinking to get herself out of her miseries. She never did drugs, but drank alcohol before she learnt how to deal with sadness properly (training and studying). Somehow, drinking with somebody else was much more fun, and she enjoyed the feeling of being able to laugh with someone and be crazy around someone without being judged.

XXX

The next morning

Rukia, Hiyori and Shinji were itching to get to the bottom of the mystery, why Grimmjow was acting like that, and in the morning at 7am, went up to Grimmjow's room. They could hear gentle, peaceful breathing from inside the room and Rukia pushed open the door lightly.

On the bed, there was, of course, Grimmjow, but what surprised them the most was a girl, with shoulder length spiky black hair, lying next to him, her head buried in the crook of his neck. Even in front of their astonished eyes, she stirred slightly, and moved such that her head rested on Grimmjow's bare chest, her arms encircling his torso. She was clothed, thankfully, in one of his big shirts, the blanket covering the rest of hers and Grimmjow's bodies. "What...?" Rukia stepped closer, and at that moment, the girl's eyes fluttered open.

At the same time, both girls asked, "Tatsuki-chan?" "Rukia-san?"

XXX

A/N: AHAHAHA I likes this chapter, especially the ending, and Inuoe is a bitch in this story, I apologize if you are one of her fans! *Bows head* thanks for reading and please review, cos it means a lot to me! :3 AND I BROKE MY RECORD AGAIN 6000+ WORDS~!