I OWN NOTHING BUT THE STORY LINE AND THE CHARACTERS THAT YOU DON'T KNOW FROM THE ANIME/MANGA!

Chapter Fourteen

New Year's Eve

"Happy Birthday!"

Kisuke jumped at the shout in the entrance to the bar. What he had been expecting to be a night alone with a few drinks and talking to Faile turned out to be a party with his Squad, Squad 14, and a few other Captains/Lieutenants.

"What's this?" Kisuke asked.

"What does it look like, idiot?" Hiyori demanded, crossing her arms and looking the other way.

"I know what it is, just…why?"

"Because it's your birthday!" Shizuka grinned as Faile gave him a shove further into the room. "You didn't expect us to just not do anything, did you?"

"But how did you…" His eyes landed on the two women at the bar. "Ah. Never mind."

Yoruichi and Hiromi grinned at each other as the blond man walked towards them. "What's up, birthday boy?" Yoruichi grinned. "You know, we were just talking about you."

"You were, hmm?" He grinned as he sat at the bar and grabbed a drink. "About what?"

"Why don't you tell him Hiromi?" The woman looked at her companion as she stood from her seat. "You were the one that said he was cute, after all?"

Kisuke felt his heart skip a beat as Hiromi began to cough. "That's not what I said!" The woman's face was flushed in red.

"Then what did you say?" Kisuke decided to ask, propping his chin in his hand.

Hiromi traced a symbol on the table, staring at it. "I just said…I bet that you'd look cute in green, that's all."

His heart skipped a beat again. "You know, I've never thought about what color I would look good in. It's always been white and black, nothing else."

"Well look-y there," Yoruichi set her glass down and turned to the group. "There's something for you to try, Kisuke."

"Maybe I will," The blond man turned to the woman beside him as Yoruichi left. "How have you been, Hiromi?"

The woman was still red as she took a sip from her glass. "Fine. Everything has been good."

"And what about your Squad? Have you found anyone else to join it?"

She shook her head. "No, not yet. I'm still waiting on Manami and Kameyo to graduate and join. No one else here has grabbed my attention just yet."

Kisuke nodded his head. "You're hard to impress, I take it."

"And what makes you say that?"

"Only seven members on a Squad? You're very hard to impress. Or is it that no one asks to join?"

"Of course they've come. But only because I'm Genrysai's granddaughter. They seem to think that it's a way to be made Captain. It's ridiculous."

"Oh, so that's why you pick them out of the ones that don't come to you."

"No. I choose the ones that stand out to me. They have…" she glanced away. "It's hard to explain in words."

Kisuke shook his head. "Then don't worry about it. You don't have to explain how you run your Squad to me. Everyone does it differently."

Hiromi set her glass down and stood up. "Well, I hope you enjoy your party, Kisuke."

He looked at her in shock. "What? Are you not staying?"

"No, I can't."

"Why not? You're the one that set it up, aren't you?"

"Yes, but there's some things that I have to do tonight. I'm sorry and I hope you enjoy the party."

Kisuke watched in confusion as the woman moved towards the door of the bar as the music and talking continued around them. He felt the sudden want to hurry after her but some drunken members of his Squad jumped on him to where he couldn't.

Just what was going on?

"Hey, Yoruichi," The blond looked at the woman across the bar. "Is Hiromi all right? It seems like something's bothering her."

It was Faile that answered though, from his own little place by the wall in the bar. "Tonight is the Anniversary of her parents death," His voice was cold. "It's one thing to have one parent die on New Year's Eve, but to have them both die on the same day, just years apart, well…"

Kisuke frowned as the others fell silent for a moment as well before the party picked back up, save for the ones that knew the parents. They stayed solemn as the music and laughter continued. Kisuke looked at the door, thinking silently to himself.

Hitomi had been asleep. Hiromi had wanted to have someone out there in the yard with her, but it seemed that she would be by herself. So, she sat on the bench that she had had set up before the pond in her back yard. She sat there, staring at the two gravestones that she had set on the little Island in the pond. She began to relive the final moments that she had with both her mother and Father together. Before her father had left for that mission of his. Before everything in her life was ruined.

She wasn't out there by herself for too long before she felt a second presence walking towards her.

"What is it, Kisuke?" Hiromi asked as she continued to gaze over the frozen pond in her yard.

"Well, I was just…I mean I want…Uh, I would like…oh," Kisuke sounded adorable, searching for what to say. She glanced over her shoulder at him and saw a nervous smile as he tried to scratch the back of his head as he held two cups and a bottle of sake.

Hiromi grinned. "Yes, I would love some."

He chuckled, nervous still plain in his voice as he sat down beside her.

"I'm surprised that you left your party. You're never going to hear the end of it, Kisuke." She told him.

"Well…to be honest…parties were never really my thing." The blond captain still had the feel of nervousness pouring off of him.

"You know, you should stop being so nervous all the time," Hiromi told him. "It's so weird. Be mean, cold, fun, energetic, smart, stupid. Hell, I don't care if you're perverted! You just have to be something other than nervous!"

"Perverted?" Kisuke's repeat made Hiromi blush. "You want me to be perverted?" She drowned her face in her glass. He couldn't help but let a huge grin break out across his face. This moment totally blew what happened in the bar before she left right out of the water.

"Seriously," She pulled her glass down. "You don't have to be nervous around me, Kisuke."

"I know that," He replied, scratching the back of his head again. "But it just sort of…comes out." ~Especially around you.~ He told himself.

"Well, perhaps this will change that," Kisuke watched as she stood and moved to her house and returned moments later, hiding something behind her back. She sat back down. "So, I normally don't do this," Hiromi scratched the back of her head. She was the nervous one, this time. "But I've known you for almost a year now so I feel okay doing this."

Kisuke couldn't help but let the dirty thoughts come to his mind. After all, she did say he should be perverted, didn't she? (lol) His fake smile fell a bit as she held out a box; instead it turned into a true one.

"Happy birthday," She grinned.

Setting his glass down, he took the box. "What is it?" He asked.

"Well, open it and you'll find out." Hiromi told him. Still smiling, he pulled the box open and stared down at the gifts. "Now, I didn't know if green and white were colors you liked so I went ahead and made you a black one as well; just in case."

"You…made these?" Kisuke sounded shocked.

"Yes." She nodded. "In my opinion, the green and white will fit you completely."

Kisuke couldn't help but continue to grin as he pulled the two hats out of the box. One was completely black and the other was the green and white striped one that Hiromi was talking about.

"My apologies if…they're not something you would like to wear." She told him.

"No no no! Thank you so much. This is really…wow. You made these?" Kisuke turned the striped hat around in his hand.

"Yeah. It didn't take as long as you think."

Kisuke gave her another thank you before pulling the striped one onto his head. "What do you think?" He grinned.

She was silent for a moment, just staring at how the hat shaded over his eyes and she then turned away, blushing. "It appears that I was right," she commented as her heart pounded in her chest.

"About what?"

"You do look cute in green."

Kisuke blushed and turned away, staring at the snow beneath him. Heat was covering his face and he felt a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach. This woman…she was the first that made him feel strange like this.

The two of them sat in a smooth silence for a little while as they continued to drink as Kisuke took notice of the small island in the middle of the pond before them. What Faile said, and the reason why he was here, came back to him.

"Hiromi," The woman turned to him. "Can I ask why you didn't take your father's Squad position?" Kisuke asked, the hat still on his head. "Why you made Squad 14 instead of going to Squad 10?"

The woman didn't respond and stood up instead, seeting her glass down. She carefully stepped out onto the frozen pond and walked out to the two stones standing on the island. Kisuke stood up and followed after her.

"In truth, when I finally decided to become a Captain, I did not see myself worthy enough to sit in my father's Captain Seat," Hiromi admitted to Kisuke, staring down at her father's stone. "He was so much stronger than me. He'll always be stronger than me, and I refuse to see anything different. That is why I refused to take his seat when my Grandfather told me I could be a Captain." She fought the tears as her father's voice, her mother's laughter, rushed through her head, but they came anyway. "So instead, I made my own. One that would make my father proud. One that would make my mother proud." Her voice shook. "But I'll never know if either of them are. I'll never get to see them again. Never get to see their smiles. I'll never-"

Kisuke wrapped his arms around her, shushing her tears. "Don't say that, Hiromi. Your father would be very proud of you. Look at what you've done. If he could say anything, and I'm sure what he would be praising you. Your mother too. You might not have gotten too far yet, but you saved Faile from the Maggot's Nest. Shijo and Faile were best friends, were they not? You've added a Bount to your Squad. You'll end up doing things that no one else here will do, but I am sure that both of them are proud of you right now."

Hiromi closed her eyes, trying to stop her tears. Kisuke was so warm. His touch was giving her a feeling of protection and care. She turned to face him.

"You really think that?"

As Kisuke stared down into her eyes, he couldn't help but give a small smile. This woman…she acted too hard to be seen tough and strong when in fact she was still, almost like a child. He life was cut in half when her father died all those years ago. Someone had to take control of the family since her mother had fallen into that state of hers and so, Hiromi stepped forward. In general, one could say that she was still a child. A child that needed someone to be there for her.

Of course she had her Squad and her friends and her Grandfather, but she needed someone closer. Someone more important than what she had now. Someone who…

Kisuke's body moved on his own as his heart continued to pound. He watched as she closed her eyes and did the same, his head lowering even more. He could feel her warm breath on his lips and just as their lips were about to connect, there was a pop next to his ear. It made him jump and they pulled away to see a paper flower floating there beside them.

Hiromi sighed and grabbed it, shoving it into her pocket. "My apologies, Kisuke, but my sister calls. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Of course," the man nodded. They carefully made their way back across the frozen pond and Kisuke gathered his things as Hiromi hurried into her house.

Kisuke turned and began to head to his own home, the strapped hat on his head and the other in his hand with the alcohol. He was humming a small tune, a large smile on his face, yet a little disappointed over what had just happened or rather, what didn't happen. He then stopped.

"I didn't know that Hiromi had a sister."

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