A/N: Hello my lovelies! Kudos to everyone who has read this far 8D I'm hoping the nervous feeling I always get before putting out a chapter is just temporary. Anyhooo, Read&Review! I'll love you for it XD Toodles!

Disclaimer: Bleach is not mine, blah, blah, blah . . .

M-A-K-I-N-G-E-N-E-M-I-E-S

Choices, Choices

Toshiro stared at me, his mouth hanging open. I was too shocked to deny Captain Aizen's statement; too shocked to look even remotely opposed to the absurd and unexpected claim. Renji was more . . . open about it.

"What?" he mouthed silently, his eyes full of disbelief.

I shook my head in an attempt to shake off the momentary stupor that had come over me.

"But, I . . . what?" I said, almost incoherently, my eyebrows pushing together. I looked around desperately for someone who looked like they knew what was happening. Unfortunately, only Captain Aizen did.

"And what if she doesn't want to be your Lieutenant anymore?" Toshiro challenged, stepping forward so that his right shoulder was just in front of mine. I stood on my tiptoes so I could look around him, determined to be part of the argument. Captain Aizen smiled easily.

"Well," he said, looking confident in every word that he spoke,"Why don't we just let her decide that for herself, then, hmm?"

Toshiro paled at these words, turning to look at me. He had a frightened look in his eyes; Oh, I'd seen it before somewhere . . . then it hit me: It was the very same expression he'd had when I'd attacked him so long ago. He thought that I was going to betray them, my friends. I was hurt. Did he really have so little faith in me? But, now that I thought about it, I hardly deserved their trust at all. Poor, little Momo, I thought mockingly, so confused and frightened. I hated that about myself. Renji seemed to be a little more confident in my mentality.

"Ha!" he laughed, without any real humor,"Do you honestly think that Momo would pick you over us?"

Captain Aizen ignored the question, instead turning his attention toward me.

"Think about it, Momo," He crooned,"Which would you rather have?"

I stayed silent, gathering my thoughts, which had been sent reeling at the way he'd said my name. I suppose I did a pretty good job keeping the emotions off my expression, though, because he continued without seeming to notice.

"To stay locked up in a cold, uncomfortable cell with these useless former captains and lieutenants?" He halfheartedly gestured toward my friends with distaste written all over his features,"Or," blinding grin," you could be a feared and respected lieutenant. With me." Captain Aizen added that last part on at the end, after a slight pause. I blinked.

"I don't . . ." Why was I hesitating? There was absolutely no reason for me to be. The obvious answer was 'no' . . . right? Maybe this was not as simple as it had seemed to begin with.

"You would, of course, be treated like a princess," Captain Aizen baited, his caramel eyes glowing."Can your friends give you that?"

"A princess . . ." I repeated softly, wondering if he really thought so highly of me. Surely I could never be any of those things that he was promising. Feared, respected, royal. That wasn't me. I was Momo Hinamori: weak, frightened . . . unstable. Nobody feared me. I could hardly control the new squad recruits, much less anyone that was actually worth directing. But still, the idea was kind of . . . alluring? I was disturbingly intrigued at the thought of being able to command people. It was not really something that I was capable of doing all that much.

"Anything you want," Captain Aizen assured me,"I can give you."

If it hadn't been for a small side-thought reminding me of my imprisoned friends just behind me, I would have caved right then and there. Captain Aizen's promise to give me anything that I desired had so nearly pulled me under that I could practically hear it rushing in my ears, threatening to drown out all logic and reason. But then I remembered what he had done to the people that I loved.

What he had done to me.

But that offer. Oh, it drug out desires from the pit of my stomach, so deep that I hadn't even realized they were there. Some that didn't have anything to do with the Captain at all. They refracted the scene in front of me, falsely causing it to not seem so bad. Without realizing it, I took an unconscious step forward. Captain Aizen grinned, pulling something seemingly out of thin air. He held the material out for me to take, allowing me to get a better look at it. I instantly recognized the small patch of cloth: a lieutenant's badge.

I shrunk back instantaneously, as if the badge were made of hot acid. All that I could think was, this is wrong. There was something so crooked about it, yet so right. Like this was the break that I had been waiting for my entire life. Still . . .

"I'll think about it-" I slammed a cupped hand over my mouth in horror as soon as the words were out of my mouth. Initially, I had meant to tell him 'no', but my lips betrayed me. My subconscious obviously had other ideas. I had to force myself to sneak a look over at my friends, for fear of seeing their reactions. They didn't disappoint. My friends, the people I owed my life to, looked for all the world like I'd stabbed them in the back. Soifon had tears running down her face. What had they done to her? The image of her crying was so disturbingly wrong that it momentarily distracted me. But only for a second.

Toshiro and Rangiku were the only ones who didn't have 'betrayal' written all over their faces. Toshiro looked highly stressed out, but expectant. (Oh, the guilt just kept piling on me until it was almost unbearable) Rangiku looked sad. Just sad. I felt another uncomfortable pang of regret.

"You may have all the time you need," Captain Aizen promised gently, snapping me back into the real world. "Now, Ulquiorra will take you back to your room." He snapped his fingers at the rather shady arrancar that had threatened me in the hallway. I frowned, not quite reassured at the thought of walking back to my room with him. He was just one more person that didn't like me.

Captain Aizen handed me the lieutenant's badge, which I took from him reluctantly.

"Just in case you decide," He said lightly. I held it gingerly, unwillingly, as if it were some dead . . . thing.

"Thank you, er . . ." I paused, unsure how to address him anymore.

"Aizen-sama."

M-A-K-I-N-G-E-N-E-M-I-E-S

Oh my, what's that? *Gasps* It's the review button!