A/N It's October, and soon will be Halloween. :) Let's get in the mood.
Knot
It was Halloween.
And Orihime, dressed in magnificent royal lilac as Scheherazade, looked the part of the Arabian One-Thousand-and-One-Nights storyteller queen as she came to the Sixth Division to collect Rukia for their trick-or-treat outing in the World of the Living.
Everything would have proceeded smoothly as the two girls and Abarai Renji were preparing to enter the Dangai if only Orihime's dupatta and Kuchiki Byakuya's blue wind silk scarf did not get entangled together.
Orihime blushed a new shade of rose, which was unprecedented. Her wrist bangles jingled as she sought to untie the knot between her and the stoic captain. It did not help that there were slight snickers emanating from Zaraki Kenpachi and the Eleventh Division.
Her embarrassment only halted when two larger, paler hands patiently stilled hers before efficiently untangling their respective scarves.
Orihime bobbed a half bow, babbling a flustered apology her eyes darting everywhere except at Byakuya before nearly grabbing Rukia to flee the scene.
Byakuya could understand her embarrassment although he thought her blush might have been nearly an over-reaction.
"Ah, they mentioned like this in History class the other day…"
Byakuya turned to look at his fukutaichou, quirking a brow, asking a silent question.
"Apparently, in Indian custom, if a woman's scarf becomes entangled with a man's, there is a red thread between them. One which eventually culminates in marriage…" Renji explained.
At the incredulous look he was being given, the red-haired vice captain made a quick exit, muttering something about watching over Rukia and returning her safely later in the evening, as he too dashed into the Dangai.
If anyone looked closely, they might notice that the Kuchiki leader appeared to have a faint flush along his cheekbones.
Unohana Retsu chuckled quietly as she stopped beside the rigid captain. "If you will allow me to diagnose your condition, Kuchiki taichou, I believe that you might have developed a healthy attachment."
The insinuation was clearly not lost on the head of the Kuchiki clan as he politely gritted out a "Unohana taichou" before gracefully walking away as diginified as possible.
It wasn't until he entered the privacy of his own chambers that he allowed a small smile to form. Perhaps he would consider joining Rukia next year in Halloween.
A/N According to Wikipedia, a dupatta is scarf, can be worn with a female suit and/or with a skirt-choli ensemble. When a woman's and a man's scarf are tangled together, it's said that they have a connection.
Tee-hee. Let's see if I can write a chapter where Byakuya and Orihime proceed to tie the knot of knots (ie. marriage).
Anyways…leave behind a message please. Reviews are most looked forward to!