I'M BACK! Dun dun dun!

So, uh…I'm not dead…yeah. I'm so incredibly sorry about this update time, and I'll apologize for the next week after this one (I'm going out of town) and I won't be able to update then either. But I'll be working again and hopefully I'll have some ideas for when I get back to the keyboard again!

weeweeeweeee, xxIciclebloomxx, Minimum Ride, Coal143, 15, FuzzyShadowFoxx, Kumishima, ChinenYuri4eva, diamondarrowmage, sarahnyaa, Mizuki-the-dead, 1o1dragon, ToshiroHitsugayagirlfriend, Reason to Scatter, carylyne, juliest et tisbe, SoupieLuv, colbub, Uchiha Kiara, bluepen19, AnimeLuva3

Really, thanks so much for those reviews…it pushed me to writing again after being hit with a huge spell of writers block, and then having a bugged computer, and then having to continue with dead ideas. Reviews are awesome!

I'll have to try to make it up by updating faster…hopefully!

I lied in the last chapter and said that there was a notice. Here it is, though I think I put this up somewhere else…

Colbub mentioned that I left out the line breaks. I put in those sentences to remind me to put in line breaks…which, obviously, I forgot to do. Yeah. So, thanks, colbub, because otherwise those would probably stay as is and you'd have to pretend that the lines were in there.

Hitsugaya's POV

After that 'sentimental' moment about Miyako, I decided to go to sleep and forget it ever happened.

I tried to close my eyes, but something wanted me awake. I picked my way over to the door while everyone else was snoring heavily, deep in sleep, like I wished I could be.

Down the stairs I went, then to the kitchen, where I fixed myself a glass of water. I was about to drink it, but I heard a shuffling behind me, the swish of fabric over wood. The stairs creaked, something I was careful about at night so I would not disturb anybody. But apparently, this person was not aware of the best places to step to avoid the noise, and so they lumbered down , also heading to the kitchen. I slid out the other side of the room quickly, and watched as Matsumoto yanked the fridge open and fished out some of the leftovers from dinner. Groggily, she gulped down the food, closed the door, and started in my direction.

I started to walk away, but she had just gone to the counter for her sake. Taking a sip, she raised the bottle and stared at it curiously. Pulling away from the light of the window, she shrugged and took another sip.

I wanted to have some time to think by myself, but since she was in the kitchen, guests were in the living room, and the bedroom was full of people, I took my chances and slipped out the back door, telling my gigai to go get some sleep. He did as asked.

Now in my uniform, I contemplated sitting on the rooftop of Orihime's apartment, but I decided to just go walking around the streets. Some time to think, I thought. And with that in mind, I started out the door.

Miyako's POV

Here I am, in the middle of nowhere.

I'd run off after I'd remembered how I died. It was such a shocking experience, like cold water being splashed on me, bringing with it the memories of my life, in chunks.

They were frightening. I even thought I was in them, they flashed so vividly in front of my eyes. But they didn't feel right. I couldn't remember them afterward, but I didn't care. I started to move away from the spot, determined to get back to the apartment and sneak in without anyone noticing.

I forgot all of them, those horrible visions, except for one crucial fact: Never trust anyone with anything, especially your life.

Something I'd make a top priority.

Hitsugaya's POV

My feet led me back to the forest where everything started to spiral downwards. Seeing the trapdoor, I stomped on it and hoped that it would be loud enough to give them all a headache. I stood there for a while, until my sandals started freezing to the newly exposed dirt.

Around and around the town I went, never setting foot on the ground after that.

I saw many things, but I never looked at them, kind of like I noticed the terrain, but I never bothered to remember. I was only searching for one thing.

A school.

At a time like this, I couldn't even be sure that there would still be one that was open. It was so close to holidays, and it was late to be out. But I found one, with the lights on, and a lot of noise flowing out of the open windows.

I peered in, just curious as to why these students were up so late. Most were in formal clothes, the kind that you would wear to very fancy parties. Or dances.

Upbeat music struggled to penetrate the thick stone walls, wanting to be let free. People started shouting. I left, because I didn't care for dances. They made me want to fall asleep.

A bit more optimistic for some reason, I started slowly in the direction of Orihime's place, when I saw a familiar tiny frame cautiously picking her way over a fallen log.

Eyes wide, I watched as she gently leaped down from the top, only to land on a rock and twist her ankle. I used shunpo to meet her; it looked serious.

"Are you all right?" I asked critically, offering my hand. When she showed no sign of taking it, I just pulled her arm up anyway, trying to support her and walk at the same time.

Before now, she'd been in too much shock to protest, but she took her opportunity now. "What are you doing?" she yelled, yanking her arm away from my grasp. When she leaned her weight back onto her injured foot, she stumbled, and yelped in pain.

I took her arm back into my hand. "Apparently, stopping you from doing something stupid." I said sarcastically. "What were you thinking? You saw that rock; you had to have. It's huge! Which explains your ankle's state."

"It was dark, and I was way up on the top of the trunk. I couldn't see it," she informed me as we stumbled along.

It was taking way too long to walk. It would be sunrise by the time we got back. So, as much as it embarrassed me, I scooped her up and started along at a run.

I thought she would just give in like she normally did, but I guess the pain put her in a bad mood. She wriggled free, landing heavily on her good foot, and glared at me.

"I don't need your help!" she hissed. Painfully, she limped forward, dragging her bad foot. I watched, bored, until she caught it on some long weeds and went down again.

I wandered over, almost grinning. "How about now?" I asked, offering my hand again.

To my surprise, she started to yell at me. "Back off! Who do you think you are?"

Now I was annoyed. "I think I'm your taicho. And I think you need to calm down, or you'll face the consequences," I threatened.

She took heed of my warning and sat down grumpily while I went back to the log. I took out Hyorinmaru, sliced off a sturdy-looking branch, and carried it over. I cut it off to the right length and placed it under her arm, like a makeshift crutch. We made faster progress this way.

When we came back, the lights were still out and everyone was deeply asleep. I didn't feel tired at all, though; must have been the shock of a third seat injuring herself so easily. I mean, she was pretty clumsy, and her eyesight wasn't the best, but she wouldn't do something that dumb. I watched as she dragged herself under the covers and tried to rest.

I thought it was odd, for some reason. She had faced worse pain than this in the Academy, not to mention she had to be prepared to be cut to pieces. Why was a twisted ankle giving her so much trouble? And why was the sight of her in pain so weird?

Then, the answer: her zanpakuto could heal. Why didn't she just do that?

I quietly suggested this to her, but she turned her back and pretended to sleep. A few minutes later, though, I saw her out of the corner of my eye, passing the sword through her arm several times.

I fell asleep unsure of what was bothering me, of why she was somehow different today.

The next morning, everyone was rejoicing at how Miyako was back.

The first was Matsumoto, who woke everyone else up with a really loud, "Oh my gosh Miyako is back!"

So now we were having one of the 'best' breakfasts that Orihime could cook, with Matsumoto supersizing everything. I bothered to taste the food before discreetly throwing it out the window.

And there Miyako sat, apparently happy to be back, pretending that she didn't remember what happened. Her smile was very convincing to anyone who was not paying enough attention. And she had her audience fooled.

However, any time she looked at me, her eyes suddenly grew cold, and she would avert her gaze quickly, the smile never leaving her lips.

I wouldn't do anything.

As much as it pained me, I had to realize that our only lead on this disturbance was gone.

Later today, I received a notice from the thirteenth squad, who was leading up research on the souls we described. They'd checked in all of their past records of enemies, of hollows, and even the ones of the runaway and missing souls, who were never found or escaped from Soul Society. Nothing that matched what these new threats could do, not even similarities.

I announced this to everybody. "We will now officially be ending this mission. Everyone be ready to leave by nine am tomorrow." They took this new development in silence, ashamed to have to give up since our target seemed to literally disappear off the face of the Earth - and there were no reports of anything strange back in the Soul Society.

After we were back, I heard Matsumoto complaining quietly to Miyako: "I'm so going to miss Orihime's cooking! Aren't you, Miyako-chan?"

She didn't say anything.

The Head Captain was disappointed at how we couldn't catch them or even get enough information on them to go back and try again. However, the recent Hollow attacks were disbanded, and we had no further signals on that specific area for a long time.

In my office once again, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something we were missing. I tried to remain at my desk as long as possible, but at Hyorinmaru's insistence, I went to sleep shortly after.

My dreams were filled with icy landscapes and blue dragons. I woke in a cold sweat. Something about that dream, just like everything else that was happening recently, was missing.

'Well, I wonder where it went,' Hyorinmaru commented dryly. 'You know, Master, maybe you're just imagining things, and everything is just fine.'

"Maybe. And maybe Matsumoto won't drink today."

'…Never mind.'

I got straight to work on the huge pile of papers that had collected in my absence. Forms to fill out, reports to make, letters to send, they were all annoying me beyond belief. I was only halfway done when Ryu came shooting into my office without knocking, spilling more papers onto my desk.

"Matsumoto told me to give these to you, Taicho. She said it was important that you fill them out right away."

I stared at them hard. Then, when I realized that these papers were her work, he zoomed back out the door. "Sorry, Taicho!" he called. "She made me!"

I groaned in frustration. How was I supposed to do all of this before the deadlines? And not to mention hers, too. I'd just leave them for last and if they didn't get done, I would say I hadn't even known that Matsumoto cleverly hid these and claimed she was finished.

Things were pretty boring by the time we were back for a week.

Same old routine, same old problems, same old time. But I guess I shouldn't be complaining - better than risking your life every single moment of the day. Oh, wait…

I didn't try to celebrate my birthday. In fact, I tried to avoid my squad members as much as possible, but Nami tricked me by saying that there was something in the office I urgently needed to see. It was a birthday party I didn't want to have.

There were tables set up everywhere, one with a small pile of presents stacked neatly on top. I blinked, not knowing what else to do.

"C'mon, let's party!" Matsumoto cheered in her bubbly tone, and gulped down an already half-drained bottle of sake. Disgusting.

Sighing, I raced over to the farthest corner of the office and stayed there, dazed with annoyance. It wasn't until I heard Matsumoto's squeaky voice proclaiming that it was karaoke time, that I finally moved and tried to hide in a better spot. Maybe in plain view…?

But that failed as I slumped down into my chair , trying to hide, and Nami and Matsumoto dragged me over to the mic, where I stubbornly refused to sing anything at all. Kenji booed me and laughed. I shoved his nose right over the mic and insisted that since I'm so bad, would he like to do a rendition of the song I was about to sing. He sang, with the members of the party clapping and laughing, and he didn't comment on anything I did for the rest of the party.

It was time, as Ryu proclaimed, to open presents. I tore through them hastily, eager to be out of the spotlight. I thanked everyone and slunk away again.

At the end, they were playing some of Matsumoto's huge collection of songs. It was on shuffle, so when a love song came on, she squealed madly like she was waiting for this one particular beat.

Grabbing Miyako, who was strangely silent, she made her way over to me. "Here Taicho - dance with Miyako!"

"Ohara-san, Matsumoto-san. Ohara-san. Don't call me by my first name," she requested tartly. I'd never heard her speak like that before.

"Oh, come on, Miyako!" she sang, swaying in time to the light melody. "The birthday boy needs at least one dance with his lover!"

I was about to use all the nasty words I hade picked up to retort, but she beat me to it.

"I'm not his lover," she snapped so harshly that Matsumoto backed off.

I decided to tease her - this was my birthday, after all.

"Why? You want to be, right?" I said quietly. Chuckling under my breath, I was surprised that she talked to me the way she did.

"I will never trust anyone like you again," she said. It wasn't angry, but…sad.

"Like me…?" But she was all the way on the other side of the room already. I guess anger made her shunpo faster.

What was wrong with Miyako?

I glanced at the office table, making my way over, trying not to step on anyone's dancing feet. Looking at the card to her gift, I read,

Dear Taicho,

Have a great birthday! Hope this isn't too ironic, but Ukitake-taicho wouldn't let me get away without me swearing that I would get you a white tiger. I didn't want it to be just that, though, so hope you like the band! And remember that I'll always be there, even when you don't want me to be!

~Miyako

I glanced down at the gift. I white tiger plushie, with a leather band around its neck, was at the top of the pile. I plucked it off carefully, and secretly tied the band around my wrist. That note had sounded just like Miyako. But just now, she said something really weird.

I decided to just try to sort things out, because I couldn't have a subordinate who didn't trust me. Finding her talking to Kenji, I caught her just as she turned the other direction.

"Ohara-san," I said.

She whirled, all weirdness of the past apparently forgotten for the moment. "Hey, Taicho. Liking your party?"

"Um, yeah…" Guess I really didn't have a reason to talk to her anymore.

"I wish Matsumoto would stop insisting I dance with someone. Even though she said I was free to choose, I know she was hinting about you."

I sighed. I was going to do something extremely embarrassing. On my own birthday.

"You want to go outside? Get some fresh air?" I asked. She nodded happily, ready to get out of this stuffy room.

I led her outside, to a space that couldn't be seen by the doors leading into the yard.

"Here," I said abruptly, extending my arm out to her.

"Uh," she said, looking at my awkward pose. "What?"

"You," I gulped. Here comes the embarrassing part. "You want to dance with me?' I asked quickly, hiding my blush.

"Ah, sure," she said happily, taking my hand. We began to whirl, the music blasting from the room giving us a light tune to use.

It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but it was still the most humiliating thing I'd done in a while. Even when I pulled her into an embrace, she didn't do anything so much as hug me back.

"This is nice, Taicho," she said. "You should be this romantic all the time. You'd get so many girls!"

"Ha, ha," I snorted. "Very funny."

"Really!"

This was so weird. One minute, she was dark and depressed, the next, she bright and cheerful. What was going on?

"I've already found one," I said slowly. Our awkward dance came to an end. Since she was pretty clumsy, and I never learned how to dance, it was just slow, awkward spins for us.

She pulled back, smiled, and continued to dance with me.

Miyako's POV

I didn't know why I snapped at him earlier, but in the fogged moonlight, I was pretty happy dancing with the guy I was now trying to apologize to by being really nice. I figured it was working, because he just basically told me he at least like to be around me, which is a huge step with my Taicho.

Hitsugaya's POV

It was pretty nice. After we finished, we snuck back in and nobody even noticed we were gone.

I was fine, she was normal, the party guests were starting to disperse, and Hyorinmaru didn't comment on our dance at all.

I had this nagging thought, though, that I tried to put out of my mind, but it kept resurfacing.

I could be liking her, my Third seat. But, even more scary: It was not likely, but entirely possible, that Miyako was going crazy.

Ooh, scary ending…

So, the mission is off, for now. Everyone is returning to their normal selves, but what is going on with Miyako?

Miyako: What? What's wrong with me? Maybe I'll just look up-

Me: *Puts in the line breaks* No way. You aren't supposed to know what other characters are thinking!

Miyako: …

Hitsugaya: Can I take back that line I said, right before the end? Why are you writing about my thoughts, anyway?

Me: Cuz I'm the all-powerful author. I can do whatever I want to the story.

Nami: Really? Then give me wings, and a new kimono, and a ray gun, and-

Me: Why do you want a ray gun?

Nami: *Shrugs*

Please review!