Becoming who we were meant to be
12: As thick as thieves
"Focus, Ichigo."
Ichigo sighs irritably, eyes still closed. "I am focusing, dimwit," he snaps back through gritted teeth.
Shinji rolls his eyes in his usual unimpressed demeanor, arms crossed. "Well, clearly you aren't, since you can't even seem to get a single word out of him."
"I told you, he only comes out on his own will." Ichigo's eyes flick open and he throws an arm in the air in frustration, snapping out of his meditating position in the process.
Shinji sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose with his fingers, clearly unsatisfied and running out of patience. "Well, we'll have to keep practicing until you're able to fully control him. 'Cause right now he could-"
"Yes, yes, yes," Ichigo interrupts. "He could notice I have no control and threaten me or come out when I least expect it, bla bla bla." Ichigo rolls his eyes. "You've told me a thousand times already, Shinji. I'm aware."
Shinji narrows his eyes at him. "Yeah, well, you better get it through your thick skull. 'Cause we ain't stopping until we know he poses absolutely zero threat. Not to you, not to anyone else."
Ichigo remains silent for a few seconds until he eventually sighs in defeat, relaxing his tensed shoulders. "I know, I know. I'll keep working on it."
"Alright," Shinji nods. "What else is on your agenda for today?"
Ichigo shrugs from his sitting position, deciding to stand up. "Kido practice with Rukia."
Shinji holds in his reaction for only a second before throwing his head back slightly with a muffled 'pfft'. "Oh yeah, I heard that was going terrible."
"Shut up," Ichigo scowls at the older captain. "I just need to get the hang of it, that's all."
"Hmm," Shinji nods, still amused. He arches an eyebrow cockily. "Teacher's a bit too distractive huh," he mutters to himself, low enough that Ichigo can't make out the words.
Ichigo frowns a touch deeper. "What did you say?"
Shinji holds a palm in front of him, dismissive as the mischievous grin disappears from his face. "Nada, nada. In all seriousness, make sure to let me know if you do get the hang of it," he adds as he starts making his way towards Ichigo's office door. "Achieving enough focus to control your kido will certainly improve the focus you need to summon your hollow as well."
Ichigo nods, pensive.
The last week and a half had been, just as planned, entirely dedicated to preparing himself, both mentally and physically, into fitting a captain's role. Policies had been dealt with, leaving tactics and recruiting still up to discussion, since Ukitake had mentioned it would be wiser to wait for a vice-captain to join in the ranks before diving into those matters.
Which only made Ichigo grow more worried about what this Atsuyo kid would actually turn out to be like.
Although, in between daily kido training with Rukia and scattered hollow sessions with Shinji, he didn't have much time left to ponder over Atsuyo Shiba.
Talking about training with Rukia…
It had only taken him a few days to get back on what he would consider to be a somewhat normal fighting level; he could now fight on the same level as Rukia in a sword combat, and even manage an occasional win. Not that his speed would ever match hers. Not in the next decade, anyway.
Rukia's kido technique had also outstandingly improved since the last time he had witnessed her use it. If she had been considered a kido practitioner six years ago, she was now without a doubt a kido expert.
Ichigo recalls last week's kido practice; the one where Matsumoto and Renji had joined in.
While the two female lieutenants were fighting using only kido, Ichigo noticed how Rangiku had to utilise incantations much more often than Rukia did; in fact, he barely even heard Rukia pronounce more than one or two as she fought silently, spiritual spells blowing up without a word leaving her mouth.
According to Renji, about two years ago Rukia's Hado technique had reached such a high level that the soldiers in the thirteenth division started comparing her skills to those of whom were considered the Kido Masters. Above any other kido ranks, they were the most respected kido practitioners in the Seireitei. A list that almost entirely consisted of captain or former captain names. Ukitake-taichou being one of them.
Seeing how hard she worked and how little credit she took for her strength and actions, Rukia quickly became respected by the soldiers under her leadership. Her disciples looked up to her, just like they looked up to their captain, Ukitake Jushiro.
Shinji's voice pulls Ichigo out of his thoughts and back to reality. "Ahh, Kuchiki-san, perfect timing." He exclaims with a smug, squared face. "We were just discussing Ichigo's terrible kido skills."
Ichigo's eyes roll back to his skull.
He hears Rukia humming upon entering his office space. "Well, I can't say I haven't seen worse." She meets his eyes briefly, then turns back to Shinji. "I believe if we keep up the training, we'll be seeing improvements in the long run."
"Hopefully sooner rather than later," Shinji adds. "If we could get Yamamoto off your back, it'd probably be in everyone's best interest."
"Yamamoto?" Ichigo arches a brow. "I haven't heard much from him since the last meeting. Do you think I'm doing something wrong?"
Shinji dismisses the matter with a wave. "Nah, actually, I don't even think you're the one he's worried about." He shoots him a more serious glare, one that indicates the elephant in the room is about to be addressed.
"The fact that the Shiba kid is graduating tomorrow," Shinji continues. "I firmly believe that's what's making him nervous." Ichigo notices Rukia stiffening slightly to his right. His own body reacts accordingly in a similar fashion.
"Between you and Atsuyo, the kid takes the cake. At least Yamamoto knows you; how you think, how you act, what tips you off, what brings your mind at peace… He somewhat knows what to expect from you, and that leads to a certain level of trust. Especially when comparing you to Atsuyo Shiba."
Atsuyo's graduation. It had been made official a couple days ago, but having been on strict orders to focus on his lessons and training only, Ichigo hadn't had much time to actually worry about what that entailed. Now, faced with the situation right in front of his nose, he can't ignore the knot forming in his gut.
"I still don't understand how someone can just go from being a student at the academy, to being a ranked officer, a lieutenant at that, with the snap of a finger," Ichigo says as his frown grows deeper.
"Nobles," Rukia murmurs not even a second later.
Shinji points a finger in her direction, like a teacher praising a student for answering correctly. "Yep. Couldn't have said it better than Kuchiki. Nobles, Ichigo. That's how. Nobility will bite you in the ass when you least expect it. No offense to the Kuchiki clan, might I add."
Rukia shakes her head lightly. "None taken."
"Listen, Ichigo. The Shiba clan is rising, everyone's talking about it. If they don't keep that momentum to push for more, to aim higher, they're gonna get back right where they were ten years ago; out on their ass." He shrugs. "They saw an opportunity, and they took it. I can't say I agree with their approach, but hey."
Ichigo's eyes fall to the floor, and he rubs his chin pensively. "Yeah, I just wish I could talk to Kukkaku, maybe it would clear some things up, answer some of our questions."
"Not a bad idea, but then again, keep in mind that not all nobles of the Shiba clan follow her lead. They have different branches, and sometimes those branches believe in different values." He crosses his arms. "If you were to meet with her, it would have to be in secret. No other sneaking noble ears to listen in."
Ichigo's eyes blink at Shinji's words; surprised yet not. He looks over at Rukia, holding her gaze for a couple of seconds before she nods.
"He's right. Meeting her could enlighten us, but it would have to be at the right place, at the right time."
Ichigo waits a moment before answering. "So, do we just wait?"
"I think it'd be wise to speak with this Atsuyo character directly before causing any stir," Shinji says, a finger to his chin. "See how he behaves, how he acts, how he leads, then, we'll reassess the situation."
Ichigo maintains eye contact with Shinji until he has no other option but to nod. Although the whole thing confuses him, he has to admit that Shinji is right; acting harshly could never cause any good, especially when coming down to nobles and their politics.
Better to play it safe.
"On that note," Shinji picks up a lighter tone, casually swinging towards the door. "I shall leave you two to it, got my own demons to fight. Catch you on the flip side."
"See ya," Ichigo calls out after him, but his thoughts aren't nearly cleared up enough. He turns to Rukia a moment later, noticing how she also seems lost in her own world. "What do you think about all this?" He inquires.
"I…think Hirako-taichou is right." She meets his gaze. "We shouldn't rush into anything and get our own feet tangled up. Right now, we should focus on your training. And," she pauses as she walks towards the opened door, nodding her head. "Talking about training, shall we?"
Ichigo's chest deflates a little. Rukia's right without a doubt, but he can't shake the fact that it feels like she's purposely trying to change the subject. Maybe nobility has affected her in ways he doesn't yet understand.
"Yeah," he answers because he has to. "We have about three hours, though. I'm meeting with Karin in between her classes at the academy."
In spite of his crazy schedule that made time pass by like a race car on crack, it felt like ages since he had last seen his baby sister. Even though he'd gotten some updates here and there, they hadn't had the time to see each other in over a week. He'd also be lying if he said he wasn't excited to learn all about how she was adapting to the academy.
"I mean, so far it's mostly been me with my head buried in books, trying to catch up on the theory. Oh," Karin pauses, putting up one finger. "And occasionally getting my ass kicked in combat class."
Ichigo raises a brow before a snort escapes his throat. "Really, you, getting your ass kicked?"
"Fine," Karin rolls her eyes. "I manage to hold my ground, but that's it. Pretty much an equivalent of getting your ass kicked."
Fighting back a second snort at his sister's silliness, Ichigo opts for ruffling her hair instead, knowing how much she hates it. He knows he's right when a scowl appears on her face. "Don't worry about it, you're tough. And you're a fast learner. I'm sure you'll bounce back in no time."
Karin brushes her hair back into place, shrugging. "Maybe. One thing is sure, I'm not giving up so easily."
"Good." Ichigo answers with a snigger. It was a relief to see Karin acting so much like herself. Maybe she would have an even easier time adapting to this place than he initially thought. That would certainly take one worry off his plate.
"What about you?" Karin asked as she kicked a small rock with her foot, making in ricochet twice on the ground. "I heard that your fetus of a lieutenant was graduating in a couple days."
Ichigo freezes as his feet automatically come to a halt. "How do you know about that?"
Karin twists around after noticing her brother has stopped walking. "That's all the people at the academy talk about. Apparently, dying doesn't stop people from gossiping." She scoffs at her own joke.
On the other hand, Ichigo doesn't look that amused, in fact it seems to be quite the opposite as he just stands there, frown dominating his features. "What do they say exactly?"
"Hmm," Karin blinks a few times, digging back into her memory to scavenge for the information. If Ichigo is so serious about it, maybe she should be, too. "Well I heard he was in a noble clan, or something." Karin faces her brother. "Some think he's getting special treatment and seem to despise him for it, while others talk about him like he's some kind of legend. Although," she shrugs. "It's not like I bump into a lot of sixth years myself, I'm only around first years."
Ichigo's heavy gaze lingers on her while he seems to be juggling around with the information she just gave him. Right when she's about to ask what's bothering him so much, he shakes his head.
"Well, I guess we'll find out in a few days." He dismisses his thoughts as Karin frowns. She doesn't like not knowing about what's making her brother worry like that, but when she opens her mouth again at a second attempt to ask him, she's stopped by him looking up in the distance, eyes instantly softer and hint of a smile on his lips.
"Looks like Rukia was able to make it, after all."
Karin's frowning expression evaporates, following the direction of Ichigo's gaze and turning around just in time to witness Rukia appearing out of seemingly nowhere, almost as if she had just teleported herself to them. Her feet break on the dirt, creating a cloud of dust behind her.
"Woa," Karin breathes out with wide eyes. "So, is this what they call 'shunpo'?" she asks her brother, curiosity overtaking her.
He gives her a grin and nods. "Yeah, are you guys already learning about it?"
"Just the concept of it, for now."
Karin hears Rukia's small footsteps behind her as she approaches and greets her. "Hey Karin," she offers a smile as she crosses her arms over her chest, leaning against the bark of a tree. "I hear things aren't too bad for you at the academy?"
The student smiles back, shoulders shrugging on their own accord. "Eh, I manage."
"By the way," Ichigo starts. "Why did you wanna meet so far away from the academy? I figured you'd prefer staying close with your tight schedule."
"Oh," Karin rolls her eyes, annoyed as soon as the thought enters her mind. "No way in hell I would want people to see you and start gossiping even more."
Ichigo blinks once. "See me? What are you talking about?"
Karin snorts at her brother's lost expression. So, he's totally in the dark, huh, interesting. "I'm talking about the Ichigo Kurosaki fanboys. Or fangirls. Both are a pain in their own ways, shockingly enough."
Her brother's face looks like it just got hit by an iron pan. "Wha-?"
Rukia's suppressed laughter erupts suddenly, interrupting Ichigo's bewildered stuttering. "So the rumors were true, then."
"What rumors?"
Everyone simultaneously turn their heads to the new voice as Matsumoto joins in, Renji following not far behind.
"Yo," he calls out, hands in his shihakusho pockets.
Ichigo frowns at Matsumoto's smirking expression. "Long time no see, Ichigo." She greets him with a wiggle of her eyebrows.
"What are you guys doing here?" he asks, ignoring Matsumoto's act.
She answers nonchalantly. "Why, we followed Rukia, of course. Thought she might be heading to find you guys. So," she picks up again. "What rumors?"
Rukia answers first, amusement tugging at her lips. "Ichigo has a fanclub."
"Oh, you mean you guys didn't know?" Matsumoto jumps in with high eyebrows. "I almost joined in myself, a couple years ago."
"The fuck?!" Renji spurts out at her, baffled.
The woman in question rolls her eyes at him. "My, my. Calm down, I'm kidding." She bumps his shoulder with hers. "Abarai, are you jealous 'cause you don't have a fanclub?"
"Like hell I am." Renji makes a tch sound with his mouth, frowning and earning a giggle from Rangiku. Karin can't do much but blink at the whole scene, perplexed but mostly just focusing on this guy's weird tattoos for eyebrows.
Ichigo sighs, rubbing his temples with his fingers. He feels like start of a headache coming on, real fast. "Let me ask again; why exactly are you guys here?"
"Well, I'm glad you asked," Matsumoto clapped her hands together, bouncing slightly off the ground in the Kurosakis' direction. "Since you guys have been through such hard and stressful times these past few weeks, we thought it'd do everyone some good to…how should I put it," she tapped her chin lightly. "…unwind, if you will."
Ichigo's scowl deepens. "You mean go out for drinks, don't you?"
"I'm in." Karin calls out not a second later.
Matsumoto instantly turns to her, hugging her close as her joy overflows. "Yaaay! Way to go Karin, already following the right path."
"Huh," Ichigo addresses his sister, interrupting the outburst of excitement coming from the tenth division lieutenant. "What about your classes?"
Karin shrugs, hands on her hips. "I have a theory class at 4, I can join you guys once it's done. Besides, if I don't lay down the books at least once I'm gonna go crazy, and I'm in dire need of a drink."
Renji snorts in the back. "I like her."
"Not helping, baboon." Ichigo scowls at Renji, throwing arrows with his glare. "Come on Rukia, you're with me on this, right?"
Rukia remains silent for a moment, eventually shaking her head slightly. "Actually, I was about to say I'd join as well. You should learn now that it's useless to fight against Rangiku. Better just give up."
"Couldn't have said it better myself," Rangiku beams with a large grin. "Come on, you party pooper. It might actually help you relax, for once."
Groaning to himself, Ichigo pinches the bridge of his nose, eventually sighing. "Argh, fine. When and where?"
Ichigo had never been much of a drinker. He could see why other people liked it, but it had never felt like a necessity, or even remotely fun to him. He didn't like frat parties, didn't like to do shots or get wasted. His experience could pretty much be summed up by drinking a couple beers at a time, and then calling it quits. Hence, why his tolerance was embarrassingly low.
Even so, he couldn't say getting smashed at a drinking game against his very own baby sister didn't hurt his pride. Especially when Renji, Rangiku and Shuuhei booed him off the counter.
"Jeez, are they always like this?" he complains, joining Rukia on the sidelines after retreating from the inner circle.
Rukia scoffs, the sake in her glass threatening to spill onto her hand. "Pretty much. Renji used to sit these out with me, but after Rangiku began making it almost weekly occurrences, he began to let loose and joined in." A quiet laugh escapes her lips. Like she was happy for him, or even, relieved. "Our tolerance eventually started getting better."
Ichigo studies her for a lingering second. "You two seem to have gotten closer to Matsumoto over the past few years."
She thinks it over for a moment, a genuine smile making its way on her face. "Yeah, I guess we did. I think all the lieutenants did. Ever since the war," she pauses, and Ichigo feels a tug at his gut. The war. When he lost everything. For a moment he wishes he could forget that feeling, but then without it, who knows where he would be right now. "Rangiku brought us all closer together, either willingly or unwillingly, but she did nonetheless."
Ichigo nods at her words. He's glad, at least she's had people around her for all those years where he wasn't. "That's good," he murmurs.
He brings back his attention to the circle when he hears Karin exclaim yet another win, hitting her empty glass of sake against the counter multiple times.
"Dude, how is such a tiny ass woman so good at drinking games." Ichigo hears Ikkaku's voice sticking out through the crowd.
"Who did 'ya call a tiny ass woman?" His sister immediately talks back with a scowl, somehow she's already managed to make herself intimidating to a bunch of highly-ranked officers.
Laughter spills out of Rukia's lips about at the same time as Ichigo chuckles, shaking his head. "Your sister seems to already be getting along with everyone. She sure is something," Rukia comments with a smile.
"Probably using drinking tips my dad taught her, if I'm being honest." He snickers but the amusement slowly washes away bitterly as the realization comes back.
Rukia notices as soon as the words leave his lips, turning her head sideways to study his reaction. "You know, in a couple of months, when things have calmed down, we may be able to get authorization for Karin to visit the world of the living. Maybe in a few weeks, even."
Ichigo's eyes had dropped to the ground without him noticing. He nods, bringing his gaze back up to the people laughing and choking on their alcohol. "You're right. I mean, we're already lucky to be where we are now. The important part is that she'll be able to see them again."
Rukia nods once. "It may be sooner than you think."
"Yeah," he gives her a small smile. "Maybe."
"Hey, you guys!" Matsumoto yells in their direction, waving them over. "Get back here, we're about to start a new game!"
Sighing in resignation, Ichigo nods at Rukia who instantly downs her drink in response. "Shall we?"
A few hours and many more drinking games later, Karin is lying on the floor, her head on Rangiku's lap as the woman passes her hand through her hair, humming a song Karin doesn't know. It's now nearly midnight, most people are lazily drinking directly from the bottle, barely maintaining conversation. Karin knows her limit and decided to stop drinking a while ago. She feels a pleasant buzz throughout her body, and with Rangiku playing in her hair, she wishes the comfort of it all could go on forever.
But Karin's mind seems to be powered by a battery of its own and doesn't stop working, even under the effects of alcohol. She glimpses around the large room of the bar and doesn't see her brother anywhere. Placing her head back down on Rangiku's lap, she looks up at her.
"Matsumoto-san, can I ask you something?"
The woman hums, eyes still closed. "Of course, sweetie. You can call me Rangiku, by the way." She grins.
Karin returns the smile. "Okay. Rangiku." She hesitates, but only for a second or two before speaking. "I was wondering…what exactly did my brother do for the people here to look at him like that?"
Rangiku briefly waits before speaking. "Like what?"
"Like he's a hero."
At that she opens her eyes, meeting Karin's curious ones. Karin notices Renji, Ikkaku and a few others she doesn't know turn their heads to look at her as well.
Rangiku chuckles. "He is a hero," she states, but Karin stays silent. Eventually, Rangiku blinks in confusion. "You mean you actually don't know the story?"
Karin shakes her head no, sitting up, blood rushing back to her head. "The only thing I know is from Urahara, he told me," she lowers her gaze for a second as she recalls his exact words. "He saved us all."
Rangiku holds Karin's eye contact, but no words escape her as of yet. It's like she's overwhelmed with the information, not knowing where to start or how to bring up the subject.
Eventually, she smiles gently. "He did." Another pause. She takes in a small breath, like she's…trying to find to courage to continue? "You see… About eight, nine years ago, one of the captains of the Gotei 13 revealed himself as a traitor. He left Soul Society, built an army, and went to war against the Seireitei with the desire of gaining more power. He didn't care if it destroyed the world of the living in the process."
Rangiku gave Karin a sad smile. "It's someone we do not speak of, not really. Not anymore."
Karin opens her mouth to apologize for butting in, realizing how everyone else behind Rangiku has now gone quiet. Judging by the way Rangiku talks, this man must've terrified her. It wasn't her place to ask, she should've kept her mouth shut. Regret blooms in her chest, but before she can speak, Rangiku stops her.
"No need to apologize. Now that you're one of us, it's your right to know what happened." She inhales, offering her another smile. "This man, to put it simply, was not gonna stop until he got what he wanted, until we were all no more but corpses on the ground." She drops her eyes to the ground and doesn't continue until they're back up. "Ichigo was the only one who was able to stop him. He sacrificed it all to save us."
Karin's eyes are wide, and she finds herself speechless. She wasn't sure what she expected to hear, but it wasn't that.
"I…I had no idea."
"Anyway, that's why he got offered the captaincy," Rangiku explains. "And why so many people know of him. Your brother is much more than he appears to be, Karin. He's a savior." This time the smile she offers isn't sad. It's real. "I'd go as far as say that to some people here, he's a living legend."
As Rangiku speaks the last words, silence overtakes the room. Karin's thoughts are swirling in her head, and the alcohol now makes it all the more blurry. Suddenly, Ikkaku coughs loudly from where he is sitting.
"Truth is, your brother's a badass," he downs another drink, falling back on his seat, one leg up. "Don't tell him I said that, though. I'm drunk as fuck and I got a reputation to maintain."
Then something inexplicable happens as Rangiku and Renji erupt in laughter, others joining in not long after. Soon enough, the room falls back into its natural state and Karin finds herself intoxicated from it all as she hears her own laugh escaping without restraint.
There's not a trace of doubt in her mind. She could get used to living with these people.
She could get used to living like them.
Ichigo's head is spinning. He hasn't drank this much since that night during his first year of college and boy, what a mistake that had been. He feels the effect the abusive intake of alcohol has on his body, and that's all he needs to know he's undeniably drunk off his ass.
"Urgh," he groans, balancing his weight on a nearby tree. "Remind me to flip off Renji the next time he offers me so much alcohol."
He hears Rukia snickering not too far from him. "Dully noted."
Ichigo opens his eyes then, noticing the moon at its peak in the dark sky. They're outside? Funny, he doesn't remember when or how they got here. Where are they again? He can't even recall. Oh, right. Some bar in the second district of West Rukongai. Matsumoto dragged them here. Yeah, that sounds about right.
Ichigo manages to take a look around. There's no one else here, but he does succeed in spotting a bench, a few meters away. He makes his way there, struggling a little with his balance, but making it in the end.
Rukia scoffs in the background as she analyzes his movements "Are you sure you can even walk?"
"Hm, no. But at least I made it. I think." Ichigo closes and opens his eyes once more, letting them naturally fall on Rukia as she walks closer to him, eventually standing in front of him with amusement tugging at her lips.
"Pfft." Ichigo frowns. "How is this fair? You weight like what…a tenth of my weight and you drank just as much as me. Yet you seem perfectly fine."
Rukia's grin lingers as she shrugs. "I'm a little dizzy."
"Tch," Ichigo clicks his tongue. "You gotta let me in on your secret, sensei."
Rukia falls quiet but allows the smile on her face to persist, crossing her arms above her chest as she turns to look up at the night sky. Ichigo breathes in and out in the silence, trying to calm the unsteadiness in his head. It fails, and after a while he decides to just give up.
For a long while, the silence is peaceful. He doesn't know how much time passes before he hears himself speaking, eyes boring into Rukia's illuminated frame.
"Hey, Rukia," he speaks with a voice that feels foreign. "Can I ask you something?"
"Shoot," she answers without moving.
He seems to hesitate. "Do you…do you regret it? You know…what happened last week?"
She freezes, dead quiet. "Regret it?"
"Yeah, you know. I was wondering. Like…wanted to make sure you didn't mind it."
After a minute or two of more silence, she turns around, facing him. "Didn't mind what?"
Ichigo blinks. "You know what." Somehow, he sees her swallowing, even in this darkness. She meets his eyes.
"No," she answers without faltering. "I didn't mind it."
It feels like an eternity passes where neither of them speaks. Neither of them breaks eye contact either, not until Rukia turns back around without another word.
"You should prove it." Ichigo hears his own voice once again. For fuck's sake, he's not even making any sense. Is this the alcohol speaking?
Rukia spins around on her heels, brows furrowed this time. "What? Prove what exactly?"
Ichigo's throat feels dry, he swallows anyway, but it's like he's lost control over his even most basic functions. "That…you know, didn't mind it."
Rukia's eyes widen then, and she blinks repeatedly, almost like she can't believe what she's hearing. "Seriously?" she spits out. "And how the hell am I supposed to prove that?"
Ichigo ponders over the question for a minute. His mouth opens to speak yet closes itself again. He repeats the process a couple times before sighing and dismissing the matter.
"You know what, never mind."
He closes his eyes, feeling himself coming back slowly as the dizziness dissipates a little bit. However, a new headache is right around the corner. He sighs, silence taking over.
"Ichigo." Rukia's voice is stern.
"Hm?"
More silence, and then all he hears are two steps echoing on the ground before something pushes on his shoulders, making his back hit the bench so hard the impact forces his eyes open in a heartbeat.
He sees Rukia standing before him, then without a word, straddling him, her hands still pushing on his shoulders and keeping him in place.
She moves forward, slowly, painfully so, as realization dawns on him. He makes note of the redness of her cheeks and his heart pace quickening before Rukia's lips touch his.
At first, it's stiff as hell. Both being under the influence of alcohol, the movements feel like they belong to other people.
Until they don't anymore.
Ichigo eventually relaxes under Rukia's touch, allowing her to do the same. Her lips move on top of his and Ichigo closes his eyes, letting his instinct take control over himself. It probably knows best what to do, anyway.
He kisses her back, and it's just like he remembers. Soft, simple. Right.
After a while Rukia's hands move into his hair, pulling on it and pulling herself closer to him at the same time. The action deepens the kiss and the whole world seems to turn upside down.
Ichigo moves his own hands to rest on her waist, squeezing it lightly while his lips find hers with more fever, nearly melting into her entirely. She returns the kiss with just as much passion, tugging at his hair, almost desperate. Ichigo's tongue finds hers, by accident or not, he doesn't know, but it's not like that even matters.
The touch causes her to push herself into him even harder, a moan escaping her throat as her eyebrows furrow like she's about to burst with emotions.
And if this isn't the most beautiful sound he's ever heard, he doesn't know what is. Ichigo groans, kissing her harder. Again, and again until that's all he can remember.
When their lips finally part, Ichigo's ears are filled with the sound of his pants, and hers. It takes a while before Rukia's hands slide down his hair and lay on top of his chest. It takes even longer before any of them opens their eyes.
Ichigo's head spins. Is he still drunk? He feels sober, yet not.
"I told you," Rukia whispers, eyes still closed. "I didn't mind. Don't ask me to prove it ever again."
Ichigo swallows, but none of them dare move a muscle. "Okay," he answers.
They don't know how much time passes, just that eventually, Rukia speaks once more, this time in a mumble.
"Ichigo?"
He inhales. His forehead is still touching hers. His eyes are still closed. "Yeah?"
"Your breath tastes like liquor. It's disgusting."
His mouth breaks free in a smile. "So does yours," he replies.
