Hi guys! Sorry for the long wait, had to gather my thoughts! ^_^ During my thought-gathering process, I began writing little Shikatema oneshots. So, if any of you are interested, the collection is called Troublesome Crybabies. Just had to put that out there!

Um, the story is finally underway! Finally, The reunion! Here you go!

I don't own Bleach. If I did, there would be more Byakuya/Yachiru scenes. I know that it's an odd pairing, but I think that they could be cute together! It's not like she won't get older. (My friends think I'm insane, but I don't really care. ^_^)

Finding where the reiatsu was coming from wasn't hard. It became a beacon, guiding him to a dilapidated shack in the 74th district of Rukongai.

Hitsugaya's first reaction was surprise. He himself had grown up in the 1st district, and although it wasn't exactly a cakewalk, he, Hinamori, and his granny had lived in a modest house and always had enough to eat. He couldn't say the same for the people here.

His second reaction was panic.

The shack was on fire. Orange flames licked at the sides, black smoke curling towards the sky.

He felt his eyes widen. For a second he froze, his mind blank. Then he sprang into action.

Hitsugaya rushed into the small shack, intent on getting Karin out. The air around him was hot and the smoke was making his vision blurry, but he made out a group of people in the corner of the room.

"Wake up Kurosaki!"

"We have to get out of here!"

"Why isn't she getting up?"

Hitsugaya felt his eyes widen and he rushed to the group. A boy with curly brown hair was trying to shake Karin awake, but he looked up in alarm when Hitsugaya was suddenly at his side.

"Who—"

"It doesn't matter," Hitsugaya snapped. To the boy's dismay, he scooped Karin into his arms. "We need to get out of here."

By now the air was difficult to breathe, and the boys put up no fight, following Hitsugaya out the door and a safe distance away. Hyourinmaru had made quick work of the fire, the hut now in ashes.

The curly-haired boy was the first to speak. "You're a shinigami," he said in awe, eyeing Hitsugaya's robes.

The boy with black hair whistled low. "A taicho at that. What the hell are you doing all the way down here?"

Hitsugaya didn't answer, but involuntarily looked down at the girl in his arms. It was the first time he had seen her since she died.

She looked the same as he remembered. Dirtier, but the same. Her hair was roughly chopped off, mimicking the style she had had when he first met her, and she had the same boyish, yet still slightly feminine face. Her body, however, was more adult than when he had first seen her. He vividly remembered the time he came to visit only to find Karin with breasts, albeit modest ones, and hips. She had tried so hard to hide them, covering herself in boyish layers, and so Hitsugaya had pretended that he hadn't noticed and that he wasn't staring at her out of the corners of his eyes.

Hitsugaya was transfixed. He could hardly believe he held the girl he had looked for countless times.

The boys looked at each other nervously, wondering why a shinigami taicho was looking at Kurosaki that way. The curly-haired one spoke again. "Thank you for helping us. I'm Sasaki Daisuke, and this is Tanaka Shin and Suzuki Ryo. That's Kurosaki Karin."

"Why is he still holding her?" the one called Shin muttered, just loud enough for everyone to hear.

Hitsugaya blinked. Then, coming to his senses, felt his cheeks heat up. He looked down at her again.

This time, to his surprise, a pair of onyx eyes gazed back at him. They widened in recognition, but quickly narrowed.

"Get your fucking hands off of me!" Karin screeched, punching him straight in the eye.

If he wasn't sure whether it was truly her before, now there was no doubt.

Like every night, Karin found herself in the world of fire. She was getting incredibly used to being there, not even surprised every time she ended up there. If anything, she was getting annoyed at the vague answers the eyes in the ceiling always gave her.

"What do you look like, anyway?" Karin asked her. For some reason, she was convinced that the owner of the eyes was a "her."

"You know what I look like," SHE sang back, clearly amused.

"Um, no I don't, smartass. Otherwise I wouldn't be asking." Irritably, she ran a hand through her hair. SHE giggled.

"You somehow know everything about me, but I know nothing about you. Not even your name."

"I've been telling you," SHE replied. "You just haven't been listening."

"What kind of bullshit answer is that?" Karin shouted. "You've never said anything that remotely made sense!"

"You just haven't been listening," SHE repeated, a smile in her voice. "Listen Karin."

Karin sighed. Every frickin' night. "Okay, I'm all ears. I'm listening, see? What's your name?"

"Tslzskdhof," SHE replied.

Karin looked up blankly. "Um, could you repeat that? Maybe in Japanese?"

SHE sighed. "See? Still not listening."

Karin fumed, debating whether it was possible to murder a being made of fire. "This is getting old. Where's that white-haired boy?"

If SHE had eyebrows, Karin was sure SHE would have raised them.

Karin sighed. "You always show him to me right before I wake up. I'm sick of this conversation. Where is he?"

SHE giggled again. "He's with you, of course."

Karin balked. "What?"

Suddenly, the world of fire began to get less and less in focus, and Karin realized that she was returning to consciousness. SHE's voice echoed, starting to drift away.

"He's with you, of course."

Karin opened her eyes, her heart skipping a beat. To her surprise, the face of the boy of her dreams was about a foot away from hers. His snowy hair swayed gently in the wind and he was looking at something in front of him. She felt his arms supporting her weight, holding her securely to him.

Karin heard Shin mutter something, causing the boy to blush, and then the boy's aquamarine eyes were suddenly locked with hers.

She felt her mouth drop open slightly, the right words failing her in her moment of panic. What forced its way out instead was a not too friendly "get your fucking hands off of me".

She was distressed. Therefore, it didn't surprise her when she reacted the way she always did when she was distressed—by promptly trying to knock the boy's lights out.

He stumbled back, caught off guard, but did not drop her. "Calm down, Karin."

She sucked in her breath, eyes wide. "How do you know my name?"

He was silent, but complied with her wishes, setting her feet on the ground. Karin backed away from him, closer to where Ryo stood.

"I told him," Daisuke answered her, his eyes never leaving their mysterious savior.

"Awfully friendly though, isn't he?" Shin mused. "Karin, he said."

Karin glanced at her friends. "What's going on?"

"Well," Daisuke said, finally taking his eyes off of the guy. "Our hut caught on fire. We tried to wake you, but you wouldn't get up."

"Sleeps like the dead," Shin muttered.

"Then…" All eyes returned to the shinigami. "He just appeared out of nowhere and carried you out."

Karin eyed the guy up and down. "What's your name?" she asked, an edge to her voice.

His aquamarine eyes met hers again, and Karin's stomach did a somersault. "Hitsugaya Toshiro," he answered after a pause.

"Well, thank you, Toshiro. I'm sorry about hitting you. You just surprised me."

Hitsugaya nodded slightly, continuing to gaze at her.

Karin shifted uncomfortably. "Is there something on my face?"

Hitsugaya looked down then. "No. Never mind."

Shin stepped forward, arms crossed. "You never answered my question, Hitsugaya-taicho. What are you doing all the way down here?"

Karin started at that. Indeed, the boy was a shinigami taicho. She hadn't even noticed, too transfixed by his strangely familiar eyes.

Hitsugaya seemed to contemplate his words. "I am here to escort Kurosaki Karin to Seiretei."

"You're here for what?" Karin near-shouted. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You are to come with me," he repeated.

"Excuse me?" There was something about him. Something that drew her to him. At the same time, her brain screamed for her to stay away.

He left her flabbergasted.

He scared her.

"I don't care if you are some hotshot taicho," Karin fumed. "Who says I have to listen to you?! I am perfectly happy where I am, thank you very much!"

Although his face was blank as slate before, Hitsugaya was now clearly irritated. "You have family," he ground out.

"This is my family!" she spat, gesturing behind her at the boys.

"You have to come with me!"

"Like hell I do!"

"Who do you think did this?" Hitsugaya asked quietly.

Karin started at his tone, but refused to be intimidated. "What are you talking about?"

"Did you think it normal to have things spontaneously catch fire? For the sun to be so hot for so long?"

Karin's eyes widened. "What are you insinuating?"

"You have to learn to control your reiatsu, Karin." His tone was softer now, understanding. "You need to come with me."

"You think I caused this?" Karin exhaled the breath she didn't know she was holding. "You are out of your mind, bud."

"Get real, Kurosaki." He took a step towards her, and Karin glared at him, not backing down. "The temperature's so hot that it's killing crops and keeping people inside. Let me guess. It's never bothered you?"

Karin said nothing.

"I always thought that was inhuman," Shin commented.

"Shin," Daisuke warned.

"And the dreams." Hitsugaya continued coming towards her, slowly. Daisuke gasped softly, and Karin's eyes widened. "You've had them, haven't you? About something that knows everything about you. Things that you don't even know about yourself."

Images of her and Hitsugaya watching the sunset assaulted her.

"You're going to be strong, I can tell. You just lack control. Come with me, Kurosaki. I can help you." If Karin didn't know better, she could swear she heard a slight desperation in his voice.

She let out a breath slowly. "What about my friends?"

Hitsugaya's gaze shifted from her to the boys behind her. He didn't answer.

"You can't expect me to leave them!" Karin said frantically. "I told you! They're my family—"

A hand on her shoulder silenced her. Surprised, Karin looked up to see Ryo. He nodded at her once.

"It's fine, Kurosaki," Daisuke said. "You obviously need to go."

"Yeah," Shin added, grinning. "It'll be cooler once you leave. Now maybe I can enjoy being outside."

Karin had to grin back. Trust Shin to be straightforward. She knew that he didn't mean it in a nasty way, though.

She sucked in a deep breath, halting any wayward tears before they even began. Kurosaki Karin did not cry. Then she took one last look at the boys who were her friends, her family. "Okay, shortstuff," she said to Hitsugaya.

His eyes widened, looking as surprised as she felt. She had no idea why she called him that; it wasn't like he was short, he had at least three inches on her. It had just kind of slipped out.

"I'm ready."

A/N: What do you think? I hope I didn't make anyone OOC. Oh well. Let me know! Review Review!!!