Author's note: bah, humbug. FFN is being unfunny, not letting me upload properly. Gah.

Disclaimer: bah, humbug. Belongs to T.K. Not me.

Confrontation at Sunset

"Did Maya? Is something wrong with-" Jushiro started, Ryo's serious countenance bringing chills down his spine. He called back his zanpaktou, sheathing the now unreleased katana.

" No!" she interrupted, not wanting him to panic. "No, Maya is fine. She's recovering. I got kicked out of the fourth squad medical facility by Isane. She said I needed to rest, and to only come back tomorrow morning during visiting hours." She explained in a rush.

His head dropped to his chest, and he refused to make eye contact, ready for the worse. "I see. I'm glad she's okay. So, then... you're here to kill me after all." Jushiro said sadly, ready to suffer whatever punishment she decided to inflict on him.

"No." She told him, shaking her head. "Maya woke up. She explained what happened." She continued slowly.

"Doesn't make it any less my fault. If only-" he refuted.

"Please." She stopped him, putting up a hand to silence his self-recrimination. " I came to apologize. I-" she started, only to be interrupted.

"No, I broke my vow. And I've let you both down." He insisted, head dropped in shame, self-disgust evident.

" It wasn't your fault!" she yelled unexpectedly. " It was... It was mine!" she said brokenly, emotion coloring her voice. "It was my fault, okay?" she told him, pointing to herself, shame and sorrow playing across her features at the admission.

" Ryo, please don't blame yourself. I should have been there earlier, kept a better eye-" he argued, hating the emotions he saw on her face.

"No! I'm the one that told her about the hollows, and I should have known that she'd react that way. I've known her for so long...how could I be so careless?" Ryo stated shakily, turning around to hide the few errant tears that had made their way down her cheek. She discreetly wiped them, wanting to maintain some dignity, and get this conversation, and her apology, over and done with.

" I shouldn't have left her in Sentaro and Kiyone's hands. They-" he insisted, trying to alleviate some of her guilt, placing it on his own shoulders, where he felt it rightfully belonged.

She let out a sad little sigh, and turned around to look at him."Jushiro, she used Hakufuku on them. Without an incantation. I wasn't even aware she had learned how to master it." She explained, remembering the story Maya had told her once she woke up.

"Still... they are higher level seats than her. They shouldn't have-" he insisted, remembering the scene that met him when he walked in his squad, his two third seats asleep beside one another. He had woken them up and questioned them, then followed Maya's reatsu, getting there in the nick of time.

"She took them by surprise. She knew they were supposed to keep an eye on her. She suspected that you were coddling her. And I suppose you were, because I asked you to. She wanted to prove herself worthy of your squad. And she wanted to help those Hollows... if you hadn't shown up... If you hadn't found her in time..." She struggled not to cry, remembering the scene Maya had so clearly painted for her once she woke up. Maya had gone in search of an underground facility that was supposedly being used by squad 12 to test on hollows that had been collected in Hueco Mundo. Ryo had read about it in a report that had come across her desk, and not thinking clearly, had commented on it with Maya. Her mind had been so full of thoughts of Jushiro, and the unending paperwork that was waiting for her, that she hadn't stopped to think about how Maya would react.

"Shhh... It's okay." He said, laying a comforting hand on her shoulder, but not trusting himself to get much closer than that. "She's safe. She is a brave little thing, going up against that many hollows, without back up. I doubt she even knew they had been genetically enhanced by Captain Kurotsuchi. That's how they managed to overpower her; they weren't the typical hollows we are used to fighting." When he had found her, she had been surrounded by a dozen Hollows, fighting bravely while injured. The number of hollows, and their uncommonly strong force had made it difficult for almost any shinigami to bring them all down at once, much less a young girl with little battle experience, regardless of how strong her spirit power was.

"Yes, she felt Captain Kurotsuchi was torturing them, but she wasn't sure that he had experimented on them. But she wanted to take them out of their misery, regardless. I don't think she had been prepared for all the enhancements he performed on them. They overpowered her so easily..." Ryo told him, describing what Maya had told her an hour earlier. "She told me how you found her, how you saved her, throwing yourself between them and her. She thinks the sun rises and sets on you now." She said with a small, almost sad smile for him. " But I...I lost it back then, when I first felt her reatsu flicker. I didn't even stop to think... I should have known better. I should have trusted you more; I should at least have listened." She finished, ashamed at her lack of control, her hurtful, spiteful rage at that moment, how she had wanted to kill him back then, make him suffer for letting Maya get hurt.

"You were distraught. And I don't blame you. It's a mother's prerogative to defend her child. And saving her life doesn't change the fact that I let her get hurt. I did let you down, Ryo. It was still my fault. I should have foreseen something like this." He told her gently, wanting to provide some comfort and take away the invisible weight that had settled around her shoulders, making her look so forlorn and defeated.

"No. I don't think you could have, and neither could I. And I'm sorry I added to your own sense of guilt. I shouldn't have exploded like that. I shouldn't have said those horrible things, I-" she argued angrily, angry at herself, and her lack of control back then. "It wasn't your responsibility to begin with. It was mine. I should have never asked of you to do what I couldn't do myself. I knew when Maya decided to join the Gotei 13 that she would be putting her life at risk. I knew!" she said shakily. She took a deep, shaky breath, trying to regain some control. "But instead of having faith in her abilities, and her judgement, I tried to protect her. I cast doubt on her skills as a soldier, and indirectly forced her to act out. If I hadn't asked you to keep her safe, she never would have felt the need to prove herself. She wouldn't have gone there all alone! It was my fault! I'm the one that tried to deprive her of the same responsibilities every other shinigami has by asking you to treat her differently. And she never understood why, she simply started thinking that you didn't trust her enough."

"She is young. I probably wouldn't have sent her on more dangerous missions until I was certain she had the maturity to act appropriately, regardless of what you had asked, Ryo. I still need to know her strengths, and weaknesses, regardless of her spirit power, or abilities." He told her honestly, wanting to bring some measure of comfort to the distraught mother in front of him.

"But you sicced Kiyone and Sentaro on her..."

He looked guilty then, a small blush appearing on his cheeks."Oh, that was so they would leave me alone for a few days. I needed some time away from y-... from work, and if I didn't assign them something, they would have followed me around." He explained weakly, not meeting her eyes.

" Oh." Was her less than smart reply, heat coloring her cheeks and neck.

He laughed uncomfortably."I-... I'd been hiding in my state for a few days... I-, I was afraid of running into you and losing control."

"Oh." She replied again, not sure what to say.

"I can't trust myself around you. I think we both proved that." he said sheepishly, remembering their last encounter, and the madness that had followed.

She snorted, a small, surprised chuckle making its way out to surprise him."I don't know whether to be flattered or offended." she told him between nervous laughs.

"Definitely flattered, probably a little afraid." He continued seriously, although he was starting to find the humour in the situation, a corner of his mouth lifting despite the seriousness of the conversation.

"Hm. Gff. I see." She had the decency to blush anew, thinking of all the things she imagined him doing to her for the past week. An undeniable heat started pooling in her womb, making her fidgety.

"Do you? I almost took you against that tree, Ryo. Where anyone could have walked in..." he exclaimed with a fierce blush, hoping she wouldn't notice the hard on that was starting to manifest itself, despite his better judgement.

"Yeah. I remember." She murmured, not looking at him, red tinting her cheeks. Feeling the blush spread to the rest of her body at mention of that night.

"That was foolish, it was thoughtless. You deserve better than that." He said, not looking at her, afraid his body would betray him again. He turned around then, trying to get his heated body to obey, the images that came back to him assaulting his senses and making him want to repeat the same foolish mistakes.

"I don't remember complaining back then." Ryo said shyly, not lifting her head to look at him.

He shook his head, and turned to her again, trying to convince her of the foolishness of their actions, hoping he could resist her long enough to discourage her. "Still, I'm older, and more experienced. I shouldn't ha-"

"Oh shut up, already." She interrupted angrily, looking at him with heated eyes.

"Excuse-me?" It took him by surprise, stopping the reluctant speech.

"Well, if we are going to talk about this, at least go put a shirt on, or something. I can't even think with all of , of-" she made a general gesture towards his bare chest, "all of that exposed!"

"Oh." He said, a small chuckle escaping. "I suppose I should cover up. I must look a mess. Would you like some tea?" he offered, while patting himself dry with a towel nearby, moving to redress himself with the kimono top that lay carelessly by a bench. He threw on the top, leaving his haori out, since he would have to shower regardless, a long, cold shower, from the looks of it.

She stared at him, watching the play of muscles as he dressed, a traitorous sigh escaping her when he covered up. A hot, sweaty, sexy mess. Yumm. Spoilsport, her horny hormones argued, angry at the loss of the sexy eye candy that had been offered up until now. "Uh, sure. Have any coffee?" she said matter of factly, not wanting to betray the sensations that had been crawling up and down her body at the thought of the things she could do with all that exposed, soft skin that sat on top of hardened muscles.

" Sorry, no. Come in, I'll boil some water, and make you some." He told her with a small smile, passing by her and walking in the direction of his quarters, motioning for her to follow. He opened the sliding doors and entered the cool room, throwing his haori to the side, while moving towards the kitchenette where he kept his tea and coffee. "Sorry, it would seem I'm out of coffee. I can go and get so-"

"Oh, tea is fine then." She interrupted, not wanting him to bother. " Nice place you got here." She told him calmly, walking into the room, looking around at the place that so uniquely resembled him, the cool tones of the wall in contrast with the warm, homey feel of the place. It was airy and fresh, decorated exquisitely, but not lavishly. The bed was an enormous piece, very solid looking, set on the left side of the room. He had a low table in one corner, and a small kitchenette off to the side, with all the utensils he would need to make tea at any time of the day. There were a few chairs here and there, and a comfortable sofa, where she could imagine him spending his nights reading before going to sleep. There was a door to the side that probably led to a washroom, another door that most likely led to the rest of the building. She took it all in, noticing how the patterns and colors reflected his personality so well.

"Thanks. I spend a lot of time here, so I try to make it as comfortable as I can." He said conversationally, moving around the kitchenette to serve them some ready tea, glad to talk about a safe topic for a change.

"Feels homey. Gives me a weird sense of déjà vu. Weird, huh?" she asked him, looking around in apparent wonder, taking in all the details of the room.

"You could say that. Here." He said tersely, giving her a cup of tea, wanting to switch topics again, away from dangerous ground.

"Thanks." She murmured, testing the hotness of the brew against her lip.

"So..." he started weakly.

"So..."she repeated, uncomfortably, not meeting his eyes.

"About what happened..." he said,

"we shouldn't repeat it-"

"we should do it again-" she said at the same time.

"What?" he exclaimed.

"What, come on, am I the only one that feels it's unavoidable? I say we get it out of the way. I can't keep obsessing about you, it's ruining my sleep." She replied testily.

"I see. Well, I...I wouldn't want to ruin your sleep." He murmured, his body waking up again to the possibilities, making him shift around nervously.

"It would be purely business. An arrangement between two consenting adults." She said seriously, while moving closer to him.

"I see. Like, a one night stand?" He asked, looking at her heated, sensual eyes.

"Exactly. Just to get it out of our systems. Then we can move on. Continue without this uncomfortable thing between us." She explained, laying a hand on the small section of exposed skin between his chest and neck, caressing it softly.

"And that would work?" he said slowly, distracted by her touch.

"I'm absolutely sure. Almost. But it's worth a try, don't you think?" she murmured against his lips, hand still caressing his neck, moving to play with the hair behind his nape.

"I can see the merit in it." He closed his eyes, sighing in pleasure at her touch.

"We won't know unless we try, right?" she whispered, almost kissing him.

"And after that, we would just go our own separate ways?" he opened his eyes slightly, to stare at her open, inviting pink lips.

"Like it never even happened. We'll continue as acquaintances." She replied, softly caressing his lips with her own.

"I see." He said, moving his lips over hers, seduced, eyes closing again.

"Today would be perfect in fact. I've been ordered to take the day off, and I can't go see Maya until tomorrow anyway." She moved to say, placing her lips against his ear, nibbling softly on a lobe.

"Hm. I see." He agreed, lost to her devious caresses, not seeing at all, but unable to stop her.

"Do you?" she whispered, tongue sliding down his neck, sucking softly.

"Perhaps you can further explain it? In detail. Slow, excruciating, detail." He offered, bringing one of his hands to hold her head at the spot, the slow torture so exquisite, he would have agreed to anything.

"Oh, I will." She said against his neck, a small smile playing on her lips.