Undertones
By: WhisperedSilvers
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What if I told you that it was all in vain?
Would it still hurt you?
Would you still feel the same?
Said it's impossible-possible
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hold me hard and mellow
"Now that everyone is present I can administer the Lieutenant's Exam," Rangiku cleared her throat to invoke order in her bedroom of all places. She would recite the rules and requirements in the living room, but since her last shopping spree, it's been a little crowded for her Captain's delicate sense, Rukia's OCD – no doubt she picked that up from her precious Nii-sama – and Renji's nosiness.
"Am I supposed to be here?" Ichigo inquired dryly, "Seeing as how I'm not a Soul Reaper, an official one at least."
"Yes, you can be here Ichigo," she said exasperatedly and then winked, "And I'll explain why in a little bit."
Renji looked even more confused.
"Welcome, to the Lieutenant's Exam!" Rangiku made big with the cheer and pulled out some confetti to dramatize the nature of the exam. "I have been made aware of three facts regarding this particular exam. We have both a captain and a lieutenant that has never witnessed a Lieutenant exam. One of the reasons why we have a Lieutenant exam – made for women specifically – is because we have a shortage of female Soul Reapers. If a woman, who is above the rank of a Lieutenant, is possibly blessed with the chance of having a child, she is exempt from all her duties except that of paperwork and written tasks. This is to promote reproduction and help the population, should a female Soul Reaper fall pregnant below the rank of a Lieutenant, she will have to perform all duties of a Soul Reaper, no exception."
Ichigo stared at her in disbelief, "But—that's ridiculous! How is that fair on any of the female shinigami?"
"Officers below the rank of a Lieutenant are in the field for low-threat hollows and dangers," Hitsugaya explained, "It's not exactly dangerous, but it's still a risk. Some officers are called into the field based on their abilities, there are always exemptions to every rule. Even if it is a mandatory rule, most Captains don't allow pregnant soul reapers into the field, even if Head-Captain Yamamoto enforces that rule."
"It's still a written rule," Rangiku clarified, "But most Captains don't reinforce it. It just to attract more females and hopefully create more shinigami."
"Besides, it's extremely rare for Soul Reapers to get pregnant," Renji interjected.
"Moving on," Lieutenant Matsumoto read from her scroll, "This specific exam is tailored to the Soul Reaper known as Rukia Kuchiki. Kuchiki-san was responsible for rewriting the rules of the Soul Society, recruiting the substitute shinigami also known as ex-Captain Shiba's son, became an ambassador to the World of the Living and secured a direct communication between ex-Captain Urahara and ex-Captain Shihoin."
Ichigo stared at her with pride, and tried not to grin, "Ambassador? Your efforts in blending in with humans is absolute crap."
Rukia threw her slipper at his face.
Rangiku giggled, "Rukia Kuchiki will now be tested for Lieutenant capability. Your exam will be broken down into three sections."
"Three?" Renji raised his eyebrows.
"One will be intelligence, the second will be in application and the third will be in resilience. As you know Lieutenants are second in command, it is imperative that you show leadership qualities as well as good judgment," she continued, "Should your Captain be incapable or indisposed to take care of those tasks either based on their health or more pressing issues, all commands shall fall to you."
Rukia nodded, but everyone and their parents knew that she has been completing Captain Ukitake's task since she Lieutenant Shiba's death.
"This is your assignment," Rangiku handed her a red scroll, "Read it and then dispose of it. You have exactly one week to come up with a plan. Once you've come up with your strategy, you will then describe to the same people within this room your assignment and what steps you will be taking."
"Question," Rukia raised her hand, "Am I allowed to ask for help with this assignment?"
"In what way?"
She paused, "You said leadership qualities, am I supposed to lead a group?"
Rangiku beamed, "Very good! Yes, when the time comes. You'll understand what I mean when you reach that bridge. Until then Captain Hitsugaya and Lieutenant Abarai, do you understand the parameters of this exam? On the record,"
Captain Hitsugaya and Lieutenant Abarai both nodded.
"I'll be sure to put down physical signs of acceptance, rather than verbal."
"Matsumoto!"
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Love you like the rain, that falls much faster
Living in a piece of ever after
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Rukia, was in fact, in a predicament.
Her assignment so to seem, sounded like something straight out of a romance manga. Only Rangiku could come up with such a plan – in this case, an assignment – and to push Hitsu—Toushiro's buttons nonetheless.
If there was one thing Rangiku knew, it was to get under Captain Hitsugaya's skin.
She did love making her Captain angry.
"What's up, Rukia?" Ichigo appeared next to her on the roof, he took a seat and his ankles dangled off the edge of the low cut square.
"I think, I'm going to kill Rangiku," she said slowly.
"The assignment's that difficult?" he replied in surprise.
"No," she shrugged, "Well, not really. But it's the nature of the assignment that's making me feel uneasy."
"How human," he snorted.
She punched his shoulder and he wobbled on the roof, "Rukia!"
She chuckled and steadied him, "It's more of a pride thing, I think. Or embarrassment."
"Why would an assignment make you embarrassed?"
"It's a…er, well I can't tell you until I figured out what to do," Rukia explained, "Hence the leadership thing."
"I'm not an official shinigami," Ichigo waggled his eyebrows, "So you can tell me. It's not technically breaking the rules and I'm not evaluating you. I think I'm there mostly for support."
Rukia thought about that for a minute, "It is a field test."
Ichigo nodded encouragingly.
She sighed, "Fine."
So she told him. With hand gestures and theatrics, the same Rukia he was used to and his slowly, slowly started to widen until they were the size of dinner plates. Ichigo's mouth parted and then he huffed, "Damn that Rangiku. So, you're worried that Hitsugaya will think differently of you?"
"I mean, we have just started dating, and we haven't exactly—"
"—had sex?"
Rukia blinked at him before gaping. She sputtered, eyes wide, and asked, "What do you know about sex? You're still a kid!"
"Excuse you, I am eighteen,"
"And I'm almost sixty,"
"I can't believe you haven't had sex—
"For your information, I have,"
"Then what's the problem?" he inquired.
"It's not like how it is for us," Rukia shrugged, "We've seen each other at our worst, we've been at each other's throats for years and we're kind of best friends—"
"—kind of? Way to throw me under the bus on that," he scoffed.
"Huh?"
"Never mind,"
She shook her head, "Anyway, we're comfortable with each other, but we were enemies first, technically—"
Ichigo interrupted, "—we were never enemies, Rukia."
"And now we're friends. I've seen you at your worst, you've seen me at my worst," she pointed out, "So, I mean, it's not like I have something to hide."
"And you were never exactly friends with Toushiro," Ichigo went along with her line of thought, "Because there was always that power struggle."
"Oh, so you have been paying attention," she teased.
Ichigo glared at her half-heartedly, "Now you've gone from subordinates to what? Boyfriend and girlfriend?"
Rukia wrinkled her nose at the term, "If you want to call it that."
"Sex is just that step," he said, "It's where you get comfortable. You're naked and stuff. I mean how much can you hide from him."
She rolled her eyes, "It's not like I want to hide from him, he wants to take it slow and I don't want to. I spent enough time trying to control my emotions and manners—I don't want to do that with him," she frowned, "You can't control a relationship, I want everything to be natural and that means not controlling how you feel and think."
"And he wants to?"
"He doesn't want it to affect my exam. Which I can understand, but with Rangiku scheming," she huffed, "I don't think it'll work."
"Rangiku, always doing God's work," Ichigo grinned anyway.
They both laughed.
From the corner of Miyagi's convenience store and Shin's pharmacy, two shinigami watched the duo laugh on top of Kurosaki's roof. Toushiro leaned against the light post, reiatsu concealed until he felt the fresh cracks of its surface itching his veins and crawling in his blood. Rangiku poked her Captain's cheek, he swatted her hand like he would with a fly.
"What does she see in him anyway?" Hitsugaya grounded out.
"They're best friends," Rangiku shrugged, "They just click, y'know?"
"I should send you back to the capital, you're picking up this human slang and it's unbecoming,"
"Did I say anything when you swallowed three cups of watermelon sorbet?"
He glared at her.
She grinned, "You're not jealous, are you? They're best friends, it's not like they're attracted to each other. I mean, I know they've tried."
"They've what?"
"—nothing!" Matsumoto chuckled nervously when she saw his reiatsu literally crackle, "I was just joking! Ichigo has too many things to worry about than dating, he's applying to universities so he can become a doctor like Captain Shiba. I hear that human schools are quite strenuous in terms of schoolwork."
Hitsugaya looked thoughtful at that.
"I mean, think of your relationship with Hina—Momo," Rangiku continued, "What you used to have with Momo, it's kind of like that."
"Is it?" he wondered, "I didn't sleep in her closet."
Matsumoto looked at him.
"What?"
"You're totally jealous,"
"I am not!"
"It's really cute, actually. She's been friends with him for years and she chooses you. I mean you did chase after her and scared her with your—"
Hitsugaya shot some ice at her, the icicles curled against her hair and the extra weight nearly toppled her over. She yelped and swatted the icicles until they fell to the ground with a gentle crack, "Captain! That was uncalled for!"
"Was it really? Or did you ask for it, Matsumoto?"
Rangiku scowled and almost giggled when he saw the grin twisting at his lips. Rukia really was a good look on him, he almost looked relaxed shooting ice at her – which was not really nice – and didn't seem bothered about Ichigo's and Rukia's relationship, which she had wanted, but not yet.
Her plan had to be foolproof.
"You know, Captain," Rangiku started off suspiciously, "You never did tell my how or why, for that matter, when you decided to pursue Rukia-chan."
Hitsugaya raised his brows at her and inquired, "Is that still bothering you?"
She pouted.
"It was during the zenpo invasion," he admitted after a short moment, "I was contemplating on whether or not to pursue Rukia even before, but I was…uncertain. I didn't know what she wanted and I didn't know what I wanted. At first, I just wanted to be her friend and break that Kuchiki mask that the damned clan constructed for her, but as she started getting more comfortable with me—" he paused, "I started to like her more than a friend, but she has had her fair share of misfortune and I didn't want to be someone who ended up hurting her or something. Then Ichigo kept popping up – even if it was his name or a thought – her face would just change and it bothered me."
"Why did it bother you?" she asked after a moment.
"It bothered me because she was never that honest or that open with me, and I wanted her to be," Hitsugaya confessed, "I wanted her to trust me and I felt like I was losing to that damned Kurosaki."
"But you said that you didn't want to pursue her because you didn't want to hurt her?" Rangiku sounded confused.
And it was confusing.
"I did," Hitsugaya nodded, "But when the zenpo came, I saw a flash."
Matsumoto stiffened, ice-gray eyes widened and her mouth parted, "You saw—"
"Kei," he smiled gently at that, "His name is Kei. Our son. Since then, it made no sense in fighting myself and my morals. Rukia is my end-game, my beginning — my future. I can't see any other than her."
"Do you think if you hadn't seen the flash you would've pursued her?"
Hitsugaya tilted his head back and said, "Yes, though, it would've taken me a long time to get there."
Rangiku laughed at that, "You're both equally stubborn."
"Didn't you hear?" Hitsugaya grinned, "Rukia is my equal."
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If you will have me
I'll make you happy
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Rangiku sat on Ichigo's bed, barely keeping her excitement and glee together. For some reason, Renji felt a sense of foreboding in the air, one look at the other Lieutenant had him wincing in anticipation. Hitsugaya frowned at Abarai's reaction and Rukia's initial pacing.
Ichigo sat at his desk, a hand covering his mouth and Kon was tied at the end of his bedpost.
"Rukia," Hitsugaya started off and was cut off by his Lieutenant who nearly squealed.
"—take your time, Rukia. You have all of our undivided attention today," Matsumoto announced.
Rukia sighed shakily, "My mission is to purify a serial killer."
Renji raised his brows, "That's…simple."
"Didn't we do something like that before?" Ichigo asked thoughtfully.
It was a false sense of security.
"Takashi Hyuuga, thirty-eight, lives in south Tokyo. He runs a drug cartel in China and there are rumors that he is starting a human trafficking ring too. We don't know how much of that is true, but according to the intel Rangiku—Lieutenant Matsumoto gave me, we can only speculate," Rukia quickly corrected, realizing that this conversation was on the record, therefore, could be used against her if she somehow screwed up.
"Who are his targets?" Hitsugaya demanded.
"For his drug ring, they're mostly criminals," she answered, pushing the whiteboard with wheels – one that she stole from the clinic and was given express permission by Yuzu in this case – and pointed to a picture with a man in a blonde beard, "Low-level criminals. From robbery to burglary, theft, and assault. Only a few people who have committed murder are recruited, apparently, humans are smart enough to keep those out of society until death in prison or in this case good behavior."
"And the human trafficking ring?" Renji asked.
"Recent high school graduates," Rukia wrinkled her nose, "Young and strong. Old enough to be put to work, but young enough to be manipulated.
Ichigo shot her a glare.
"And who are they killing?" Hitsugaya pointed at the ringleader, "I would think that if they run a human-trafficking ring, Hyuuga would want to keep merchandise rather than destroy it."
Rukia suddenly looked uncomfortable. Licking her lips, she straightened her shoulders to brace herself – almost as if she knew the direction the mood would take – she rearranged the papers on the board and explained, "Most of the people who are taken into Hyuuga's rings are men, but the people he takes pleasure in killing, are women."
A silence and then—
—the temperature dropped abruptly, but no shinigami was stupid enough to comment on the change in temperature.
"They are small and petite," Rukia shifted over to remove a piece of paper hiding previous targets, "With dark hair. Traditional looking Japanese women; rich. He preys on the weak and vulnerable. He likes it when his targets are drawn to power."
Hitsugaya's eyes were like the ocean, like lightning, crackling, reiatsu in vivid streams spinning in his iris as he stared at her, his lips pressed together and his nostrils flared.
"What's your plan?" Rangiku asked sweetly.
"His targets, both men and women are attracted to his club—establishment, named warp, ten miles away from Karakura High School, the minimum age for entrance is eighteen, but my sources tell me that it's easy to get a fake…I.D?" Rukia sounded hesitant at the end of her explanation, she looked at Ichigo for confirmation, who gave her a thumbs up.
"It's restricted mostly because of the alcohol," Ichigo shrugged, "That doesn't stop most minors from getting in though."
"You're going to infiltrate the club," Hitsugaya said flatly.
"Logistics speaking," Rukia tried to minimize her words, "It's my best bet. Undercover. I would have to gather information, associates, runners—I need to consider the whole structure because I'm basically taking out an entire syndicate," she paused, "I mean you're all going to be there, so it's not like I'm going to be walking into a trap; even though you're there to evaluate me."
Hitsugaya wanted to open his mouth and snap at her irrationally. To tell her that she was being beyond reckless, pull her to the side and throttle her. He wanted to kiss her until all the oxygen in her lungs disappeared, pull her inside him, wrap her in his reiatsu and keep her safe. But this was her exam, and he had to bite his tongue because he couldn't be biased.
Fuck.
This was his idea.
"How are you going to get a fake I.D?" Rangiku asked.
"Keigo will get it," Ichigo answered for her, "He's been begging me to go with him. He'll get one for Rukia no problem, I'll just go with him a different date—to avoid confrontation."
"See that you do," Hitsugaya warned, "If things go wrong, he will get hurt."
The carrot-head waved it off, "He can handle it, anyway. Kisuke took care of it."
Renji looked at Rangiku.
Rukia tilted her head, "And that's the second part of my plan."
"Which is?" Renji raised a brow.
"We're going to need Urahara…and a few of his merchandise," her nose wrinkled, "Just some things I need while I'm undercover."
"Shopping?" Matsumoto's hell-grey eyes lit up with elation.
"Sort of," Rukia glanced to the left, "I ordered some supplies a few days ago. One of which is a new mod soul and a sheath for my zanpakuto. Nii-sama gave me a card to use at my discretion."
"It must be nice to have a rich brother," Ichigo pointed out sarcastically.
"Jealous?" Renji snorted.
And then Kon escaped from the bedpost and started to put his two cents into this so-called plan.
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Praying that tomorrow I'll be braver
Maybe I can tell you, maybe we can do this
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"Lieutenant's exam, hm?" Kisuke made a sound of interest, he considered the group in front of him with a wave of his hand and twisted in the stool behind the counter, "Captain Kuchiki must trust you a great deal."
"Why wouldn't he?" Rukia countered with irritation.
"Because he has a stick up his ass," Ichigo interjected all huffy.
Kisuke snorted in amusement, "That too, but you're his little sister," he continued to drawl out, "The pride of the Kuchiki clan – his really – and he's been hell-bent on keeping you out the capital's problems."
"Well he hasn't had a choice," Hitsugaya scoffed, "Rukia would've joined the ranks sooner rather than later. More of it has been for demand and to create a balance should we enter another war."
"I read the report Ukitake sent me," Kisuke's eyes sharpened, "Your uncle has been quite busy, hasn't he?"
"Are we here to reminisce?" Renji questioned warily, "We need to get through this exam before we even think about Kōga. You said you wanted to start today?"
Rukia nodded and then turned to look at Urahara, "The faster we get this out of the way, the faster we can get back to hunting the zenpo."
"That's some determination, Rukia," Yoruichi in all her cat glory, crawled from behind the cabinet and jumped on the counter, "I expect no less from Byakuya's sister."
She gave her a wry small and then asked, "Did you get my order?"
Urahara, back to business, nodded animatedly, "Two mod souls, two crystal senbon, a white sheathe, five earpieces, a new cellphone with zenpo GPS and reiatsu paper made from sekkiseki."
"That's a lot of stuff," Ichigo's eyes widened at the list and then asked, "Two mod souls?"
"One for me and one for you," she said and gave him the red pill, "These are different mod souls, my gigai can only hold on to so much of my reiatsu before it rejects my power. We need our bodies to be able to fight while we are in shinigami form, should it come to that."
Urahara made a sound of interest, "These are the two latest models. Natsu and Hikari. They're able to draw on your shikai even while you're in soul reaper form, which should not hinder you when you're engaged in a fight or otherwise."
"Shared power?" Hitsugaya blinked at that, "Can you put an order in for six more?"
"Six?" Rangiku stared at him.
"For the entire squad," he elaborated, "Should we need them."
"Better to be safe than sorry," Yoruichi added.
When Rukia finished stashing her new items in her pouch, Rangiku was the one who received a notification from her phone. She frowned, "There's a zenpo sighting, east of the north river."
Renji glanced at Rukia who looked mildly uncomfortable standing in between Ichigo and Hitsugaya. He grimaced, "We'll take care of it. You go prepare for your exam, Rukia," then he paused, "Ichigo you should come with us, it's near your school."
Ichigo knew his school was in the opposite direction, but when he glanced at the awkward expression on Rukia's face, he decided that it was in his best interest to go – there was nothing more awkward then getting in between a lover's spat – he told them, "We'll call you if we need to."
"You better," Rukia warned.
He shot her a grin and disappeared with the two Lieutenants.
After a long minute, Hitsugaya wrapped his arm around her waist and asked, "Hungry?"
"I could eat," she admitted.
"Pick a place," Hitsugaya said when they started to walk towards the more urban area of Karakura, "I'm not very familiar with human eateries."
"You don't go out to eat when you're in the World of the Living?" she inquired curiously.
"Matsumoto always provides food or Inoue," he made a noise of disgust, "Though I always prefer whatever Matsumoto buys."
"Inoue's cooking is…very particular," Rukia laughed and led him down a particular street, one where stalls were open and lanterns started to light.
"That's a polite way of putting that, yes," he chuckled and looked at the open market, "I've never been to this part of Karakura before."
"I've only been here a few times," Rukia answered, "There's an ice rink down by the mall ten minutes from here."
"An ice rink?" Hitsugaya raised a snowy brow.
"We'll go there one day," she smiled and pulled him into another street on the left side of the flower stall, "It's not as confusing at it sounds."
"How many times have you gone to this ice rink?" he wondered, red lanterns washed over his face in an amber-colored glow, his eyes even more icy and bottomless.
Rukia blinked at the intensity of his irises and swallowed, "Twice. Ichigo took me. He said as an ice-user, he thought I'd like it," she finished with a small smile, "I thought, you might too."
Hitsugaya's expression softened and he gave her a small squeeze in thanks. A few minutes later, they stopped in front of a shop with walls and a door made from glass. Potted plants hung from the ceiling and lights hung on strings made from crystal. The establishment read—
"You have got to be joking," Hitsugaya deadpanned when he read the sign.
Kyoko's Café.
Rukia chuckled in mirth, "I thought you'd appreciate it."
Hitsugaya only sighed with exasperation, still, he allowed her to drag him inside the establishment, they chose a table close to the window but with enough sun that Rukia could see the sunset in Hitsugaya's aqua-colored gems, and Hitsugaya can count the shades of black and indigo in the highlights of Rukia's hair.
"Tea?" she asked and pressed on the pad, "We order on here, and the server brings us our food. That way we have a lot more time to look over the menu."
"Technology is strange here," Hitsugaya commented, "Ginger?"
"There's ginger and lemon," Rukia said.
"That's fine."
Rukia tapped on the pot of tea and clicked six servings. She wasn't sure how much was a cup – human measurements are so bizarre – was and selected. She actually didn't need to ask Hitsugaya for his opinion or choice on what food to order, that was how well she knew him. She ordered a plate of risotto, shrimp in a garlic sauce, bread and strawberry crepes.
"I've never even heard of some of these dishes," he glanced at the pictures with an odd look.
"International dishes," she supplied, "It's a mix. Japan has adapted and changed most of the recipes to fit the tastes of its people. That and sometimes merchants and business owners can't get certain ingredients. They have to improvise."
"You spent a lot of time in the human realm," it was a statement, not a question, "What is this crepe thing?"
"It's a dessert," she shrugged and then her eyes glittered, "It tastes a lot like watermelon."
Hitsugaya perked up a bit like that.
Rukia smiled more to herself than to him. She knew this was the calm before the storm, she had enough experience with that. Hitsugaya knew only the outline for her plan, but the execution is where she thinks – Matsumoto is most certain – that Toushiro would snap. At the same time, they need to clear the air—all of this walking on eggshells and trying to control their emotions.
Their shinsei sainou was a direct result of that. Ukitake had explained that to her one day. By controlling your emotions and never having an outlet to release all that pent up reiatsu caused it to leak and flare up when fighting. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but it just reminded her that she wasn't being honest to herself and more importantly, Toushiro.
Halfway into her risotto, she asked, "Why did you want to take this slow?"
Hitsugaya suddenly choked on a piece of toasted bread, he sipped his tea and cleared his throat, "That's—" he inhaled shakily, "You want to talk about that now?"
Rukia nodded, leaning in, she wiped the corner of his mouth, the herbs from the toast scratched his lips when he swallowed too quickly and explained, "I don't want to mess up my exam, we have to have this conversation as much as it pains us," he chuckled at her wince and she continued, "I don't want to be distracted or hesitant when I take the assignment. So," she smiled bashfully, "For my peace of mind, we should talk about it."
"Very well," Hitsugaya agreed, "I wanted to take it slow because I haven't courted anyone before. I don't want to mess things up," he looked at her with consideration, "I don't want to mess things up with you."
"But you will," she blurted out and then continued quickly when she noticed a silver of hurt flash through his eyes, "And I will. It's just how things work. Relationships. Family. Friends. One of us will mess up and we just have to fix it, because that's the only way to move forward."
Hitsugaya listened to her earnestly and it made her stomach warm to have that attention, that attentiveness and kindness bestowed on her. "When you said that I felt like I had to be careful around you and," she scratched the back of her head, "And I talked to Ichigo about it. He made me realize that I shouldn't have to be careful with you. I shouldn't feel like I have to act and be proper all the time," she poked her risotto with a fork, "That I should be myself because isn't that the point of being in a relationship?"
Hitsugaya nodded thoughtful, "That, among other things," he plopped a shrimp into his mouth and said, "I apologize if you felt like I was putting pressure on you and," he rolled his eyes, "Ichigo is right, but I will never tell him otherwise. We'll just let nature take its course."
Rukia giggled at that, "He has his moments."
He smiled at that, "You know, I used to be kind of jealous about the relationship you have with Ichigo."
Her eyes widened at that, "But we're just friends!"
"I know," Hitsugaya sighed, "Matsumoto made me see reason. I just wanted you to be as comfortable as you are with him, with me."
"So, you want me to punch you in the face for acting stupid and wring your neck when you do something reckless?" Rukia inquired incredulously.
Like lightning, Hitsugaya snatched a kiss from her before she could even realize it, his lips curling upwards at the dazed expression on her face and he chuckled, "Cheeky."
Rukia grinned, "I could also use you as target practice."
"I don't think you'll be satisfied with the outcome, Rukia," he responded just as easily.
It was ironic, he mused. He wanted to crack her Kuchiki mask but ended up forcing her to use it once he had broken it. Only Rukia was truly able to decide when to use it or not to, and that was mostly because her demeanor was a shield, a weapon meticulously crafted by reprimands and control.
She let her guard down, for him.
And Hitsugaya couldn't think of anything better.
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Need someone to whom I can belong
Here's my confession
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"Rukia, it's almost ten," Ichigo called out, his back against the couch and a manga book on top of his face.
"I'm busy!" Rukia's muffled voice came from his bedroom door, "This senbon is hard to pin!"
"Rukia, stop moving!" Rangiku scolded lightly and soft thud could be heard from his room.
"Are…women's clothes always so violent?" Renji asked hesitantly, his dark jeans and green turtleneck vibrant against the red of his hair.
"It's the senbon," Ichigo chimed in, throwing the book onto the countertop and sat up abruptly. He wore ripped acid-washed jeans and a black V-neck, "I've seen Yuzu use chopsticks as hairpins."
"And it just stays?" his thin brows disappeared into his headlines.
"I'm pretty sure Momo or one of the girls did something like that," the human replied.
Ignoring the irrelevant conversation, Hitsugaya tapped on the door and asked, "Rukia? Are you alright?"
"I—I'm fine!" her voice ended up squeaking and another stumble was heard, "Rangiku stop pinching me!"
Renji's face flushed at the sudden lewd picture that flashed before his mind.
Ichigo gave him a kick.
"Alright—Alright! Enough!" Rukia had had it and slammed the door open.
Hitsugaya took a step back, teal orbs widened and his mouth parted slightly.
Rukia stood with a silk, off the shoulder dress that barely graced the skin of her thighs. A shade of midnight, the inky color spilled over moonlight and dipped in between her small breasts until her sternum was nothing more than a whisper. The senbon – one at least – held half her hair back in a small bun, the rest of her hair tumbled down her jawline, framing her face
"That's one senbon," Ichigo said suddenly, "Where's the other?"
"None of your business," Rukia said just simply, "But the reiatsu paper," and lifted her leg until her mid-block heel reached just underneath her bottom, "Is under here. Rangiku gave you the earpieces, right? So we can discuss a plan when we get there. It'll take a few minutes to drive over—I don't think Rangiku," she looked over to the Lieutenant who wore a slinky, red cocktail dress and stilettos that look like needles rather than shoes, "Can run in those."
Renji fought a shiver of terror at the picks on her feet.
Matsumoto frowned, "You underestimate me," her eyes glinted at her Captain's mute expression, "Let's go, boys, I have to set up your wire. All the connections in here will mess with the signal."
The blonde shuffled the boys outside the house – she was grateful that Captain Shiba took the girls out to a camping trip tonight – and gave Rukia a slow wink.
Once the door snapped closed, Hitsugaya broke out of his stupor. Teal burned like fire, he took a step in front of her, he noticed the kohl that smoked along the edges of her violet irises, the thickness of her lashes and the pink of her lips.
"This club," Hitsugaya started off, his fingers trailed over the silver hoop against her left ear, "Is for humans? Humans who are looking for a mate? A bed partner?"
She blinked taking in his sudden outfit. A white buttoned-up long-sleeve top with three buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up, dark wash jeans and simple boots. She—
—Rukia's train of thought came to an abrupt halt, as she watched his hand trail down her ear to her cheekbone as he waited for an answer, "Somewhat. It's a popular past time for young adults."
He narrowed his eyes, "You're offering yourself up as bait."
She didn't deny it, "Yes."
Hitsugaya hissed between clenched teeth, he took another step in front of her, this time his knees brushed her bare thighs and she had to crane her head upwards to look at him. He shoved a thigh in between hers and pushed her until her back rested against the wall. Leaning downwards, he breathed, "Do you want to test my patience, Rukia?"
Rukia could hardly breathe, the smell of him engulfed her, his hands warm on her waist and the sweet pressure of his thigh rested in between the vee of her legs and she felt bold when she raked her nails down his neck, whispering against his jugular, "Yes."
Hitsugaya shoved her upwards until she straddled his thigh, weight resting on the hard muscle and he seized her lips in a kiss that she felt tingle to the tips of her toes. His lips were both soft and demanding as he kissed her with an intensity that she couldn't help but keen to. Fingers raking the short strands at the back of his neck, his hand running against the bare expanse of her collarbone and it wasn't until she wrapped her left thigh around her waist did he lift her until they were chest to chest and hip to hip.
Rukia tilted her head, wanting a better angle as he devoured the silk heat of her mouth, tongue running down the crown of her mouth, and she bit his lower lip in retaliation. The sharp sting of pain caused him to ground into the soft skin of her thighs and the heat of her core.
The pressure undeniably sweet, even as the buckle of his belt caught dangerously close to pricking the satin of her underwear and she writhed under the teasing lick of heat. Her hands roamed the expense of his shoulders, the edges of his chest and his hands dug into the back of her thighs as he changed movements into a slow grind.
Rukia pulled back to breathe – even though she didn't need it – but the taste of him had her spinning. When his teeth grazed the skin underneath her chin to the dip in the throat, the air released from her teeth and she hissed, "Fuck."
He was careful not to leave a mark, teeth dipping into the moonlight of her skin, pressing in the hollows, tongue tasting the freckles the sun left her, the bitter acid of her perfume and the sweetness of her warmth. The bare expense of her clavicle and her throat gave him a lot of free-range.
Hitsugaya ground into her again, this time his belt buckle hit the edge of her clit and her eyes glaze over with stars. She shivered when he did it again, her thighs quivering at the tease, she bit down his throat and groaned softly, "Toushiro."
"Fuck," he kissed her again, teeth pulling her upper lip into his and his hands trailed to the sides of her knees, up her thighs until he felt—
A senbon.
A senbon strapped to the inside of her thigh and he didn't even feel it.
Hitsugaya pulled back, held her eyes and fingered the senbon strapped to her garter.
"The senbon," he exhaled into her mouth.
"My hair," she panted and whimpered when he pressed into her harder, "And thigh."
Toushiro narrowed his eyes, his hips swiveling, and he held over the edge, molding and remolding her until she was nothing but a star ready to burst, "Don't let them get this close."
"I won't," Rukia breathed.
.
.
.
Hoped it would be you all along
All along
.
.
.
footnote1: A lime for these hard times.
footnote2: The goal is to finish this fic before the end of the month, but we'll see.
footnote3: over 100k? who am I? Catch you in the next one.
footnote4: song used —Tinashe: Bathed Breath
As always, please review.