Chapter Nine

"Ichi-nii! Ichi-nii!" Karin yelled, snapping Ichigo violently out of his meditation. That was the second time in as many days. He was never going to gain control over himself and his Reiatsu, which Byakuya had instructed him to see as an irrevocable extension of himself.

To control his Reiatsu, he had to control himself. Exercises such as meditation, and various forms of physical exercise and stretching would help one to learn to control one's body to a fine point. Ichigo had said that he had learned that all it took was to imagine a black ball in front of him. The darker and more solid the ball was, the stronger and more controlled one's Reiatsu would be.

Byakuya actually hit him for this. He said that if Reiatsu control was that easy, then the lowliest of peasants could control it and learn Kido along with the best of Shinigami, and the power they had would become meaningless.

Ichigo sighed, and stood up, and slouched over to the door to see Rukia and Karin standing there.

"Hi, Ichigo… Sorry to bother you. You didn't hear us at the front door, so you were no doubt meditating again."

"Don't worry. I promised Karin I would take her to see a teacher. I'll do that. I spoke to Lieutenant Kuna earlier today. She doesn't have a problem teaching you Hakuda. She said she'd be in the 9th Division Barracks around this time.

Though, that may not actually be the case." Ichigo said, leading Karin out.

"Thank you for bringing her here Rukia. You can stay if you haven't got anything else to do. I won't be gone long."

Rukia thought for a moment, and didn't respond to Ichigo's invitation. It was a pretty straightforward invitation, basically asking her to stay. She knew that she had every right to say she was busy, and she was sure that if she returned to Ukitake, he could find work for her to do. But he had said specifically that once she brought Karin to Ichigo, that she could stay if she wanted.

She smiled shyly. Her captain was always so understanding, and rarely demanded anything of his subordinates. He was kind enough to let her spend her evening with Ichigo. The only problem was that she didn't know what they should do. Should they just stay in his home and talk? Maybe it would end up evolving into more…

No. That was not allowed. Her Nii-sama would surely come after Ichigo's life if Ichigo actually had sex with her. It would be an ugly sight, as Ichigo was easily as powerful if not more so than Byakuya, and had control of his Hollow mask and even some Quincy powers. She had even heard from Ikkaku that Ichigo had performed rudimentary Kido in front of them in a practice fight with Kenpachi.

He had used Bakudo #1 to freeze Kenpachi in place for but a moment. She was amazed that such a low Bakudo even worked on a man as powerful as Kenpachi. It went to show that Ichigo had more control than he gave himself credit for.

"Hey… Um…"

"Captain Kurosaki!" The guards at the Ninth Division said, snapping into a standing position and standing at attention. Ichigo had to say that he still felt slightly uncomfortable with the way he was being treated now that he was a captain.

"Look… I've told you, you don't have to be so formal…" Ichigo said, turning pink. Karin couldn't help but laugh at this.

"Hey. She's cute. This your girlfriend?"

"No, stupid! Lieutenant Kuchiki is Captain Kurosaki's girlfriend! They met in the Human World."

"I heard that rumor! It's gotta be bullshit. I know Captain Kurosaki is an extraordinary Shinigami, even by captain standards, but Lieutenant Kuchiki is a noble… They don't date just anybody…"

"Yeah, maybe… But this girl can't be any older than 80 at the very oldest, and she's an Academy student to boot."

"Um… Guys? I'm still standing right here…" Ichigo said, disgruntled that they were arguing about him right in front of him."

"O-oh! Our apologies, Capiain Kurosaki! Sh-she's not your girlfriend, right? She looks so…"

"I'm his sister, dimwits! Can't you see the family resemblance?" Karin snapped furiously, blushing quite as red as Ichigo had been just a moment ago.

"And I'll have you know, I'm thirteen! NOT EIGHTY!"

"What's going on out here… Oh, Captain…" Kensei began. Ichigo interrupted him, though.

"Just call me Ichigo. You knew me way before I became a captain. We're here to see Lieutenant Kuna."

"Mashiro? She left about five minutes ago. She wouldn't give me a definite answer of where…"

"Oh, Kenseeiiiiiii!" Mashiro called, sounding as loud and obnoxious as ever. Kensei gritted his teeth. It was obvious how irritated he was by her… "Oh! Berry-tan! It's you! I knew Rinchin was coming. Didn't know a great and powerful captain would need my help."

"You call me Rinchin again, we're gonna have a problem. I don't need another dyke hitting on me…" Karin griped, causing Ichigo and Kensei to snicker.

"What!? Mashiro isn't gay! Rinchin has a dirty mind! Ahahahaha… !

Anyway, let's get started. We're gonna start with some stretching. Let's do it in the fitness room." Mashiro said, seeming more focused than usual. As the two girls walked away, Kensei leaned over, and smirked.

"So… Are you really dating Kuchiki?"

"Yeah… Hard to believe, right? I couldn't really believe it at first either." Ichigo said with a slightly embarrassed smile. It was unlike him to be embarrassed about anything, especially when he was dating such a beautiful woman as Rukia. This led the members of the division to look at each other.

"Well… You have good taste in women… I'll give you that much. And look what I'm stuck with…" Kensei said, pointing at Mashiro, who was skipping to the training room with Karin.

"I never knew you were dating Lieutenant Kuna…"

At this, the other members of the Sixth Division snickered under their breath, and Kensei felt a vein throbbing on his forehead.

"We are NOT dating!"

"Yeah… But they argue like a married couple…" One of the members said, and the other laughed. At this, Kensei hit him over the head.

"Whatever. I haven't really got time for this. Just tell Lieutenant Kuna not to go overboard with Karin."

"Um, Ichigo… Why did you choose Mashiro to teach your sister Hakuda? Surely Captain Soi Fon would've been a better option…" Kensei said. "Mashiro has a pretty unusual fighting style. She's admittedly excellent in hand-to-hand combat. But her style probably isn't suited to your sister."

"Well, we'll see. If it doesn't work, we'll look for someone else. Soi Fon scares Karin, and frankly, she scares me…" Ichigo whispered. Kensei actually laughed at this.

"Yeah… She's not actually as bad as she acts, but I understand the sentiment… The truth is, she's just super, super tsundere." One of the Sixth Division members said with a nervous laugh. He was pretty sure that Soi Fon would personally gut him if he ever said that to her face, but he felt fairly secure saying it at the moment when she wasn't around.

"Tsundere? I don't think I'm familiar with that term. Does it have to do with the fact that she's a noble?"

"What!?" The two Sixth Division members said, their mouths hanging open.

"No… Tsundere… Um… It's supposed to describe someone who's cold and blunt most of the time, but becomes soft around the object of their affection…"

"You mean Ms Yoruichi?" Ichigo asked. "Yeah, I noticed that Captain Soi Fon was always nicer to Ms Yoruichi than to most people, but I didn't know there was a word for it."

"Anyway, Soi Fon actually isn't as scary as she looks…"

"Oh? That's good to know…" Came a voice from the doorway. The four men turned around, now completely stiff with nerves.

"C-C-Captain Soi Fon…"

"Captain Soi Fon… Why are you here?" Ichigo asked, worried about what her answer would be.

"Didn't Lieutenant Kuchiki tell you? You two aren't communicating very well if she didn't even tell you that." Soi Fon said with an irritating smirk. Ichigo normally would have told someone who made that suggestion to bite him, or something similar. But Ichigo had seen the way Soi Fon was able to fight, even against Aizen, and he had no intention of pissing her off.

"No… Lieutenant Kuchiki and I haven't really spoken much except for a few isolated incidents."

"Well, maybe you should at least send Hell Butterflies…"

"I never got that. Why call them Hell Butterflies. Isn't this supposed to be equivalent to Heaven? I've seen Hell. I've sent a Hollow or two down there."

"No! Kurosaki, I'm surprised at you. The Human perception of Heaven is inherently fallacious. Human souls hardly ever travel to God's realm. You went there only once to have your Zanpakuto reforged, and to retrain yourself. Human souls travel from the Human World to Soul Society. It is not anything like the Human conception of Heaven."

"Alright, alright… Yeesh… No need to bite my head off…"

Soi Fon sighed at this, and bowed her head in apology, excusing herself timidly. Ichigo quickly followed her out of the barracks, though, grabbing her arm to stop her. He quickly found her blade directly on top of his wrist.

"Take your hand off, or I'll cut it off!" Soi Fon snapped, sounding even more vicious than she had mere seconds ago.

"Sorry! Y-you just… Never told me why you came in the first place."

"Oh… S-sorry. Lieutenant Kuchiki asked if I could train Karin in Hakuda. But I can see that you already got Lieutenant Kuna to take the job. So if you'll excuse me, I have much work to do."

"Wait. You don't seem like yourself. I admit that I don't know you very well but you've always been so completely composed, but just now, you looked like a shy little schoolgirl."

"If I knew what a 'schoolgirl' was, perhaps I would be offended. I haven't the time to deal with your asinine babbling."

"Whatever…" Ichigo sighed. Then, a thought occurred to him. "Oh, shit! I left Rukia waiting at my office! I told her I'd be back soon!" Ichigo said nervously, rushing out, and moving into Shunpo with great speed, displaying great fleetness of foot. Before long, he was standing at his office, and saw that Rukia was still in there, sitting on the couch, drinking tea.

"Rukia… Sorry… I-I got caught up at the…"

"No need to explain. It's good to see you. I have the evening free. I was hoping to spend last night with you, but we were interrupted."

"Yeah… Sorry about that. I've told Lisa not to come to the barracks this evening. I really should be spending this evening meditating and practicing control over my reiatsu. But I'd much prefer to spend it with you."

"I shudder to think how Lisa interpreted that. Perhaps you should have been a bit more subtle."

"She won't tell anyone… I think…"

"Anyway, how are your captain's duties going? It must be difficult since you only just became a full-time Shinigami, and already you are a captain." Rukia said to Ichigo. Ichigo smiled sheepishly, and shrugged.

"Dunno. I must be doing alright. I haven't heard any complaints yet… Damnit!" Ichigo snapped furiously, pounding the table with his fist.

"What's wrong, Ichigo?" Rukia asked.

"We have visitors. I bet Lisa did this just to mess with me…"

"You give Lieutenant Yadomaru too little credit, Ichigo, she… Okay… Apparently she did set this up…" Rukia said with a slightly irritated smile.

"Hey, guys… It's been a really long time… Well, for most of you… Asano-san, Chizuru, Tatsuki, Inoue, and… Oh, my… So embarrassing… I've…"

"Mizuiro Kojima." Mizuiro said politely.

"And even Riruka is here… How nice to see you all…" Rukia said, standing up, and inviting the group in. As soon as the others got in, Rukia noticed that she had missed one.

"Yuzu-chan! Wow, you've changed so much!" Rukia said, inviting Yuzu in as well.

"Actually, I came because I thought I might be able to see Karin-chan… Everything is so dull and lifeless without her and Nii-chan in the house anymore. I really miss them. Is there really no way that Nii-chan and Karin-chan could come home?"

"Yuzu… I'm sorry." Ichigo said quietly. He then looked at the others, who all took the hint and went into the other room with Rukia to talk on their own.

"It is good to see you again, Yuzu. But, I…"

"You're always so distant, Nii-chan, even with your own family. Can't you call me Yuzu-chan… Even just once…"

"Of course, Yuzu-chan. You should live as a human. If you feel a need to train spiritual powers, you should consider talking to Ishida's old man. He's a Quincy. Has dad told you about what mom really was?" Ichigo asked. Yuzu shook her head. Ichigo sighed. He wasn't surprised, really.

"Well, dad used to be a Shinigami, and mom was a Quincy…"

"Sorry, Nii-chan, but what's a Quincy? Is it mom's family name?"

"No. Quincies are humans with spiritual powers that allow them to act in many ways similar to Shinigami. You've met Uryu, right?"

Yuzu nodded.

"Well, he's a Quincy, and he can use Spirit Particles to create bows that can kill Hollows. Quincies and Shinigami are fundamentally different, though. While Shinigami use their Spirit Energy to power their Zanpakuto and send Hollows to Rukongai, Quincies use their bows to destroy Hollows totally.

Hundreds of years ago, Shinigami and Quincies went to war because Soul Society claimed that the Quincies' habit of destroying Hollows permanently was throwing the world out of balance, since there are only a limited number of souls in existence, and when souls are destroyed, the scale that is the world is tipped slightly in one direction or the other.

Thus, Shinigami keep balance by sending the souls of Hollows to Rukongai. But Quincies serve a vital purpose as well. Since Quincies are humans, they can be right on the scene when Hollows attack, and protect humans where Shinigami have to come to the human world. It was all explained to me, but it's not quite as simple as that, even. So although Shinigami and Quincies are often on bad terms…"

"But I don't want to be a Quincy! I want to be a Shinigami, like Karin-chan, and Nii-chan, and dad! Can't I start learning to be a Shinigami as well?" Yuzu asked. Ichigo sighed. He didn't really know what to say.

"I can't say yes or no to that. It's up to dad. I'll send him a Hell Butterfly, and he can decide for himself. Would you like to see Karin? I can take you to her. She's practicing with Lieutenant Kuna, right now."

"O-oh, well… I wouldn't want to disturb her during practice…"

"Well, Karin'll probably come back here later. Guys! You can come back in! I'll talk about this with you later…"

"But you let Karin-chan be a Shinigami as soon as she asked! It's not fair!"

"She needed dad's permission as well. She got it beforehand."

"Okay… But who is that magenta haired girl? She's dressed really weirdly, and she talks even more weirdly…"

"Oh, that's Riruka Dokugamine… She's… I guess she's a friend, though I'm never quite sure with her…"

"You got pretty sweet digs, here, Ichigo!" Keigo said, coming in and sitting down right away without bothering to wait for an invitation. The others all waited until Ichigo told them they could before walking in and sitting down.

"Sorry we interrupted your date with Rukia, Ichigo…" Tatsuki said quickly. "Your lieutenant said that you weren't doing anything."

"I'm sure she just didn't know Kuchiki was here, Kurosaki-kun…" Orihime interjected diplomatically. Ichigo and Rukia looked at each other doubtfully.

"No. She just likes causing trouble. From what I know, she was the same for her former captain as well." Rukia said.

"Her former captain? How long has she been in Soul Society?" Mizuiro asked. Ichigo and Rukia exchanged shrugs.

"Dunno…" Ichigo said unenthusiastically. "From what I've been told, she's been a Shinigami for at least a hundred years, though, since she was already a lieutenant, I would imagine that she was a Shinigami for a long time before that even."

"Whoa! You mean she's that old?" Keigo asked. Ichigo looked away, and snickered. If only Keigo knew just how old even Rukia was. From what she had said to Ichigo, she was at least 150 years old, though there was a chance that she was exaggerating, or rounding up or down, as she had only stated when Ichigo first met her that she 'had lived ten of his lifetimes'.

"Kurosaki-kun? Why did you leave so suddenly without telling any of us? Did you even think to tell anyone you were leaving forever?" Orihime asked, looking slightly hurt.

"Well… It was all kind of sudden, Inoue…

"Rukia showed up and told me that the Gotei Thirteen finally had requested that I join them permanently. They had finally filled a number of the captain vacancies left by Aizen, Gin and Tossen, but one or two died as a result of the Vandenreich attack on Soul Society, so they re…"

"That's no excuse!" Tatsuki snapped, jetting forward, and aiming a jab at Ichigo, which Ichigo deftly caught, and reversed their positions, holding Tatsuki's arm behind her back.

"Sorry, Tatsuki. Reflex."

"Even after all that practice, I'm still not as good as you." Tatsuki said with an irritated scowl. But then, she smiled.

"I'd have expected no less from the guy who managed to beat that psycho with the purple eyes."

"Well, I had a bit of help on that front. But did you just come here to visit? If so, I do have some snacks. It's mostly really weird stuff that the former captain left behind. But it's fine to eat, and it would be a shame to waste it." Ichigo said, surprising Rukia with how formal he was being. He went into the kitchen, and pulled out some water crackers and tapenade along with some sushi from the fridge. He then brought the snacks out, and went back and made some tea quickly, and served it as best he could.

The office was crowded, and he didn't have enough cups in a single set to give everyone the same style of cup. But he did his best, and they were all reasonably impressed.

"Don't look at me that way. Byakuya said that if I was gonna marry Rukia, that I had better learn some culture, or he'd never allow her to say 'I do'."

"May I ask who Byakuya is?" Tatsuki asked politely drinking her tea, and taking a piece of sushi from the plate.

"Mm… This sushi is really good! Where did you get this? There's nothing like this in Karakura Town." Orihime said cheerfully. "You know what would taste really good with this sushi, Kurosaki-kun?"

"W-what?" Ichigo asked, not sure he wanted to know.

"An ice cream sundae with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, cherries, and pickles, and some cheese and potato chips on the side…"

The whole group stared at her as if she was mad.

"Are you sure your mistress is quite right in the head, Captain Kurosaki?" Lisa asked, causing the entire group to look up at Lisa for her rather inappropriate comment. "Apologies. Captain Kuchiki demanded to see you" Lisa said quietly. But her voice made the whole group look around as the serious looking captain walked in.

"Hello, Captain Kurosaki…" Byakuya said serenely, walking in and standing in the doorway.

"Hello, Nii-sama. It's good to see you." Rukia said deferentially, bowing politely to Byakuya. The others looked between Rukia and Byakuya for a moment. Tatsuki was the first to get the courage to speak.

"This guy is your brother? I do see the resemblance…" Tatsuki said with a nervous smile. Byakuya's presence was slightly unnerving.

"You would be mistaken. Any similarities in appearance are merely coincidental in nature. I was actually adopted by the Kuchiki Family. It's actually a long story…" Rukia said with a weary sigh.

"Well, that's alright. The weekend is here, and we don't have anywhere to go. Let's hear it." Tatsuki said brightly. Rukia sighed again, and knelt down on the floor, took a sip of the tea that Ichigo had made. She had to admit that under Byakuya's rather harsh tutelage, he had gotten better at teamaking and tea ceremonies. But he still had nowhere near the skill that Byakuya had.

"Well, this actually happened years and years ago, after the Vizard incident, but before any of you were born. Nii-sama met a woman named Hisana. Hisana was my sister, but, knowing that she couldn't take care of me, she left me behind in the 78th District of Rukongai, an impoverished and crime strewn district to say the least.

Nii-sama and Hisana got married, but Hisana was sickly to begin with, and succumbed to her illness and died. Her dying wish was for Nii-sama to find and adopt me. Nii-sama did this, and, finding that I was skilled with the Shinigami Arts, enrolled me in the Shin'o Academy, which is how I became a Shinigami, and that's how we got to where we are today.

Well, it would be more accurate to say that Nii-sama defied the head of the family in adopting me. Already, he had gone against the Kuchiki Family in marrying Hisana. But he did so because he loved her, and because he loved her so much, he defied them again to adopt me."

"Wow… I gotta admit, Mr. Stiff here doesn't look even close to being that romantic…" Tatsuki said skeptically.

"It is true, Miss…"

"Arisawa…" Tatsuki said, not bothering to tell him to call her Tatsuki, as she was sure he wouldn't.

"Miss Arisawa. I am not a romantic person by nature, but Hisana brought out a better side of me. Surely you have had a person in your life who brought out a better side of you than you typically show…?" Byakuya said quietly. Tatsuki sighed. For her, that friend was Orihime. She didn't have anyone with whom she was in love, but she wasn't in a rush.

"I do not wish to alarm you, Captain Kurosaki, but you do realize that one of the Fullbringers is sitting right in front of you, correct?" Byakuya asked blandly, not seeming worried at all, but putting his hand on his Senbonzakura. Riruka grabbed her Love Gun, and pointed it at Byakuya, who tilted his head to the side, wondering if Riruka was really naïve or daft enough to think that a toy gun would defeat his Senbonzakura.

"Enough, enough. I don't want fighting in my home. Dokugamine-san is here by invitation. She's a friend…" Ichigo said, holding up his hand. "

"I see. Well, I have places I must be. Unlike you, I take my captaincy seriously. I wish you all a good evening and a pleasant weekend." Byakuya said, walking out of the room. At that moment, Karin walked into the room.

"Sorry, Ichi-nii… I know I should've knocked, but… What the hell…? When I leave there are two people and when I get back there are ten? And who the hell is the idiot with the dorky hat and the magenta pigtails!?" Karin snapped. She knew she was being rude, but she was in a bad mood. Ichigo could see Riruka ready to attack Karin, so he intervened immediately, and took Karin to the kitchen.

"Would you like some tea? Sure you would. Wait in here a moment. No need to get into a fight with Dokugamine-san." Ichigo said, turning to the stove, and setting more tea to boil. There had been so many people that he had poured all the water before Karin even got there.

"I-Ichi-nii… I-I know you're involved with Rukia, but… H-have you ever, even once thought of me in that way?" Karin asked, blushing nervously. She hadn't expected to have this conversation with him when she first walked in the door. But then she saw the shoes by the door. She recognized one or two of the pairs of shoes, but the rest had been unknown to her until she walked into the office and saw all the people sitting with Ichigo.

Ichigo looked at Karin sympathetically, not quite sure what to say. If he just said 'no' outright, he would hurt her feelings. But he would be lying if he said 'yes'. He had never 'felt that way' about either of his sisters.

"Karin-chan… You're one of the most beautiful girls I know, but… Well… You're my sister. I've never considered you or Yuzu-chan in that way. It just wouldn't be appropriate. You're both so much younger than I am in the first place, and…"

"That doesn't matter to me. I can wait! I will wait as long as I need to until you love me the way I love you." Karin said with a determination that Ichigo had rarely seen in Karin. She had always been a determined and strong willed girl, but this really went beyond just willpower.

"Karin-chan… You shouldn't close yourself off to other men just because you like me right now. You're only thirteen. You have a long life ahead of you, and you're sure to meet many men whose eye you'll catch. Just be open to other people.

Ah! The tea's ready…" Ichigo said, cutting off the conversation, and pouring Karin's tea, making sure to use the right proportions. Byakuya had told Ichigo that tea ceremonies and teamaking was an art, not a science, but that the proper proportions were still important. After a minute or two, Ichigo handed Karin her cup, and walked back out to the office with her.

"Man… Why does Ichigo have all the luck with the women?" Keigo was asking loudly as Ichigo and Karin walked back in. "Arisawa-san, Inoue, Kuchiki, Dokugamine… Even his own sister is in love with him…"

"I am not in love with Ichigo!" Tatsuki snapped, bolting to a standing position. "We're just good friends!"

"And I'm not in love with him, either, idiot!" Riruka yelled furiously. "He's just perfectly amazing in every way…" She said proudly, as if this answered any doubts Keigo may have had.

Karin merely blushed at this as the only people who didn't seem surprised by this were Yuzu, who had known about Karin's brother complex for a long time, Rukia, who had seen Karin confess to Ichigo, Ichigo, and Riruka, who agreed fully with Karin that Ichigo was amazing. Frankly, Karin wouldn't have wanted this fact to get out like this. But, overall, it wasn't the worst thing in the world.

"Well… We've gotta get going anyway. It may be the weekend, but homework abounds…" Tatsuki said, sensing that this was her cue to exit the domicile as it were.

"Alright, see you guys later. Don't worry about cleaning up. I can do it later…"

"What? Really? We can he…" Tatsuki began. She would have felt bad leaving Ichigo to do all the work.

"No, no. It would be impolite to ask guests to help clean up. Besides, you don't want to miss your gate, do you? It was good seeing you…"

"But you do have work to do, don't you?"

"Unfortunately. I never thought being a captain would be so challenging. Good luck with your college exams if I don't see you again before then."

"A-alright… Have a good night, Ichigo…" Tatsuki said uncomfortably, walking out with the rest of the group.

"Alright, now Karin… How did your lesson with Lieutenant Kuna go?" Ichigo asked, both Karin and Rukia sitting down on the couch that was in the office.

"Well… First, Lieutenant Kuna had me do all these bizarre stretches. I had to pull my legs up and put my feet behind my head like this…" Karin said, groaning still in pain at the hard work she had done.

"Then we went onto a few more stretches before we got to fighting. I had trouble fighting Lieutenant Kuna. Her fighting style is weird. It didn't seem to have any rhyme or reason to it, but she was so flexible that she could get out of any situation with just a few movements. By the end, I sort of began to be able to fight her. But it still gave me a headache to follow her."

"Well, take some Motrin and get to bed. You'll be seeing her again tomorrow."

"O-oh… I can't see her tomorrow. I have another date with Toshiro…"

"Captain Hitsugaya?" Rukia asked, straightening up slightly.

"Yeah. Why?" Karin asked. Rukia smied and shook her head.

"No reason. Excuse me I need to head back to the Kuchiki home for the evening…" Rukia said with a smile, and she bowed, walking out.

"Well… I guess that leaves me to take you back to the Shin' o Academy. Well... It is getting dark, so let's get going… Karin?"

"Ichi-nii… I know I'm never going to stop being in love with you. But if 'no' is really your final answer…" Karin said, tears actually threatening to fall. She hadn't cried since their mother died. Not even once. "Then I'll accept that. Besides, you seem to be really happy with Rukia, and I wouldn't want to take that away from you."

"Thank you, Karin. Do you want to take another lesson with Lieutenant Kuna tomorrow?"

"Can't. I'm expected on another date with Toshiro. I think he likes me. It isn't that I mind spending time with him. He showed me some really interesting stuff last time, but I don't want him to get the wrong idea."

"Then just tell him that you aren't interested in him like that."

"But if I'm wrong, I'll just end up making an ass of myself…"

"Well, then wait for him to ask you out and if he never does, it's never a problem. If he does, you can reject him and have done with it."

"Can I really reject him? I mean, he is a captain. Wouldn't that kind of be a faux pas?"

"No. The only captain I would really look out for is Mayuri Kurotsuchi. Never agree to do anything for him without finding out what he really wants. He tried to capture and dissect Uryu when we came to Soul Society the first time. His madness runs pretty deep."

"Ichi-nii? Before I give up on you… Can you do me one favor?" Karin asked, looking deeply flustered. Ichigo narrowed his eyes.

"What is it?" Ichigo asked. It wasn't that he didn't trust Karin. He never agreed to anything until he knew what it was he was agreeing to.

"Could you kiss me? I mean for real… Like, on the lips…"

"No." That would be a complete betrayal of Rukia, and would totally get his ass killed by Byakuya if he ever found out, especially since it was Ichigo's own sister.

"Please? Just once. Then I'll never ask again…"

"Fine… But seriously… Never again…" Ichigo said, getting a bad feeling. He was being far too accommodating and nothing good ever came of that. He leaned down to Karin's level, and cupped her cheek, kissing her on the lips… Just as Rukia walked back in.

"Ichigo? Karin?" Rukia had come back for some reason, and walked in on the worst possible situation.