A/N: I don't own the characters, or even all of the plot. :(

Chapter 6

"Someone's in a good mood."

Nanao looked up from her computer to find Rangiku Matsumoto in the door to her office, one shoulder leaning against the frame. Rangiku tossed her ginger hair over the other shoulder and raised one eyebrow questioningly. "Any particular reason why, Nanao?"

"It's nothing." Nanao replied calmly as she tried not to blush. She'd been almost humming. What next? "Work's just gone well this week."

"Um-hmm." But Matsumoto did not sound convinced. "Well, you can tell me all about it over dinner." At Nanao's blank look she went on. "Seriously? Don't tell me you've forgotten! It's Friday. It's been two weeks since our last girl's night out. Maybe more. But tonight is our night, and we are going out, Hon!"

Nanao glanced down at her conservative, dark-gray, pinstriped pantsuit. "In this?"

"Don't worry, last time I dropped by your apartment I picked up a couple things to store at the office. And remember shopping last weekend? I maybe accidentally-on-purpose kept that shirt you kept trying to put back. And here it is!" Matsumoto reached into her briefcase and triumphantly pulled out the flimsy blue shirt that Nanao remembered only too well. Not that it wasn't decent – Matsumoto had been slowly forced to give up on getting the other woman into anything like a revealing top – but it was so, well, so light blue. And it was too silky, with all kinds of unnecessary ruffles. Nanao felt ridiculous wearing it.

But she'd been trying to take Lisa's advice to "loosen up" a little, at least so as to save herself from her boss's repeated attempts to help her do so, and Matsumoto had sworn up and down that Nanao looked gorgeous in it, and anyway, it was a girls' night out … she gave in.

Five hours later she was wishing that Matsumoto was a little more careful in defining the terms she used. Certainly it had been a girls' night out – until after dinner, when it turned out that Matsumoto had invited not only most of the other associate directors, but some of their bosses, to one of her favorite after-dinner spots: a local ice-cream parlor.

"This isn't exactly what I thought you had in mind." Nanao remarked over the hubbub as she looked at Matsumoto across the small round table they were sharing with Isane, Shuuhei, Ikkaku, Yumichika, Shunsui and, inexplicably, Zaraki Kenpacki and his six-year old daughter.

Matsumoto only laughed in reply. "Oh c'mon, doesn't it make a nice change? Besides, I love ice-cream, and I hadn't seen Yachiru in ages." Here she stopped to make faces at the small girl before pushing her ice-cream towards the six-year old. In Nanao's opinion Yachiru Kenpachi did not need any more sugar, but trust that not to occur to Matsumoto. "And this is one of her favorite places too, isn't it, Zaraki?" The huge man only grunted in reply, which Matsumoto apparently took to indicate his agreement. "Besides," she continued, "it's fun!"

Nanao was not sure she would concur with this. Not that the ice-cream itself was a problem – it was quite good – but Nanao was still having trouble with the casual way in which most of the employees of Sereitei seemed to mix their work and personal lives. They had to have friends who didn't work there, but you'd never know it from the amount of time they all spent together outside of the office.

Still, it didn't seem to have had a negative effect on the office environment, which was what counted in the end. In fact, if Shuuhei and Isane's conversation, or the shared laughter of Kira and Momo a few tables over was any indication, all of the interaction outside the office might be proving a good motivator and reinforcer of interdepartmental bonds.

Of course, she added mentally, inter- and intra-departmental relationships could lead to inter- and intra-departmental break-ups, which would be less than pleasant for all the parties involved.

Her deepening gloom was interrupted by Shusui, who leaned over to say with some amusement, "Why Nanao, don't tell me you're worrying about work while eating ice-cream! Relax a little, my dear."

"I'm quite relaxed, thank you." she replied automatically. She looked up to find him smiling incredulously. A little self-consciously (and hoping she wasn't starting to blush) Nanao amended: "Well, perhaps I was worrying a little."

And being very silly about it too, she added to herself. After all, there was no reason to worry about the effects a break-up would have on staff dynamics when no one was even dating yet. And things at Sereitei were actually going quite well. Shunsui was teasing her less, and between he and Matsumoto, Nanao was fairly certain that she'd been "loosing up" a little (and probably would have been whether she'd wanted to or not).

But now she did want to, and she'd been making an effort to more approachable and friendly towards the others she worked with, especially the women. Isane and Nemu were both fairly quiet, though easy to talk to, and Nanao had especially enjoyed getting to know Momo, who was generally cheerful, talkative, and had a sense of humor that, in some ways, rivaled even Matsumoto's over-developed sense of fun.

The men were also easy to get along with, although Nanao had initially been put off by Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Renji's outrageous behavior. But she had come to enjoy watching some of their antics, though she still found Shuuhei and Kira easier to talk and relate to.

The coalescing of the group of associate directors was probably enhanced by their all being so young. Iba, at 36, was the oldest and also the only one married. He had two children, whose pictures he had cheerfully showed Nanao two weeks before when the group was having drinks immediately after work, and he had brought his wife to dinner with them the week afterwards. The others, however, were more or less in the same stage of life as Nanao: young, single and enjoying it.

And that, Nanao thought as she set down her empty ice-cream cup and stood up to follow Matsumoto out the door, was exactly what she ought to be doing, and why she ought stop borrowing trouble and enjoy their night out.

This didn't prove to be a very hard resolution to keep: as they were leaving the ice-cream parlor Mr. Ukitake told her not only that her shirt was a lovely color for her, but that Shunsui had been the one to comment on it first. This tidbit was both surprising and gratifying because Nanao had always considered herself somewhat plain. It was nice to know that her beauty-loving boss had approved of her apparel. It also helped that she had heard the compliment through Mr. Ukitake and not from Shunsui himself – it was hard to believe direct compliments from him because he always couched them in so many layers of hyperbole.

The bar they went to after ice-cream, at Matsumoto's insistence, was featuring a jazz band, and the atmosphere was light and relaxed. Nanao had a chance to talk to Momo, to closely observe (at Matsumoto's suggestion) the interactions between Isane and Shuuhei, and she even had a nice conversation with Ikkaku – an unusual circumstance indeed.

Nanao's good mood from Friday night carried over into Saturday. She spend the morning reading, met Lisa for lunch, then spent the afternoon with Matsumoto, Momo and Isane, as the former two were convinced that what Isane really needed to help her dating life was new shoes. Nanao tried to be the voice of reason, but instead got talked into buying a pair of shoes and a soft, fluttery green shirt for work.

"So many of your clothes are structured!" Momo had insisted, "This will be a bit of a new look for you." "And look how good the color is on you!" Isane had thrown in. Nanao was not proof against these arguments, although she did stand firm on her decision that her choice of underwear did not need to be updated.

On Sunday she went to visit her parents, and spent the day relaxing with them and enjoying being in the house she'd grown up in.

All in all it was a wonderful weekend. She was later unsure as to whether that was simply a cruel twist of fate or a sort of advance apology for the weeks that would follow.

She stood in front of the mirror longer than usual on Monday morning, making sure that the ruffles of the new shirt were just so, and that the hang didn't look strange above her dress pants. But Nanao finally had to admit that there was nothing more to be done, and to make up for the unusual femininity of her attire, she was extra careful to pin up ever stray wisp of hair, pulling it all back into a tight bun.

Nothing seemed out of place when she entered the building, except that Shunsui seemed to be there already. It was odd, since only an important meeting would have dragged him into the office by 8:30, and she didn't remember that there was one scheduled, but then it was quite possible that he had simply forgotten to tell her, or that it was a last minute request from a client.

There was no explanatory email or flowery-scented note, so Nanao went on with setting up her things and getting out the papers she'd need immediately. After checking email and responding to a few of the more urgent ones, Nanao decided coffee was in order and headed towards the break room.

It was only 9:15, and the coffee machine was still surrounded by gossiping employees, several of whom were reporting that there was disorder in Legal, Advertising, and Accounting. It seemed that a few of the heads of department were ill, although no one was quite sure with what, and most of the staff were busy trying to figure out if they had seen flu-like symptoms in anyone around the building. Shunsui, despite clearly not being in his office, was not included in these speculations – his habitual tardiness was too common to be remarked on.

While Nanao didn't quite believe that three heads of department had simultaneously come down with a deadly illness, it did seem to be a fact that Aizen, Gin, and Tousen were not in the office. Perhaps there was a conference she hadn't heard about? But it was more likely that they were in the same meeting as Shunsui. She shared this thought with the rest of the staff in the break room, hoping to cut down on some of the gossip. She wasn't particularly hopeful that that would work, but it didn't seem like a bad idea to try.

She had barely sat down at her desk again when the phone rang.

"Nanao Ise sp-"

"Ah, Nanao." Shunsui's voice was tired. "Please come by my office immediately."

His tone was rather worrying. Shunsui, contrary to the belief of some around Sereitei, was perfectly capable of being serious. But now he had sounded almost weary, and Nanao was not quite sure what to make of it.

"There you are, lovely Nanao." The endearment seemed a little forced; Shunsui looked more tired than she'd ever seen him. There were, she counted quickly, six coffee cups on the desk. He must have wanted caffeine very badly indeed.

"Sir," she began, sitting down slowly, "how long have you been here?"

"Since last night."

"What? But, what's happening? Why didn't you call me sooner? Are you feeling well?"

Shunsui chuckled. "I'm fine, just tired - I didn't get my beauty rest." he added with a flash of his usual self-pitying humor before becoming serious again. "Have you heard about anything happening in some of the other departments?"

"Yes," said Nanao slowly, "some of the staff are saying that at least three of the directors aren't in today – Aizen, Tousen, and Gin, I believe. People seem to think they're ill, although I assumed they were at a conference. Are they not?"

"Gossip certainly does travel quickly." Shunsui remarked. "Well, they certainly aren't here today, and I don't expect any of them back."

"Ever?" Nanao asked, startled. "Did they … quit? All three of them? Over the weekend? But that's - Shunsui, can they do that?"

"I suppose you could call it quitting," Shunsui mused, "but I expect most people would call it probable embezzlement followed by betrayal of Sereitei by absconding with company secrets in order to start a rival organization."

Nanao gaped. Then shut her mouth, consternation on every feature of her face.

After about twenty seconds one of Shunsui's eyebrows quirked upwards. "What, no questions, my dear Nanao?"

Nanao pulled herself together. "When did it happen?" she asked, voice firm.

He sighed, and admitted: "We weren't sure until last night. It was Urahara, in Karakura, who noticed; he was puzzled that Gin had mentioned the possibly of a new contract on Friday. Fortunately for us, he and Hitsugaya keep in contact. Hitsugaya heard from Urahara on Saturday, and then spent that afternoon and evening looking things up, before telling Ukitake and I. The three of us spent most of Sunday trying to figure out exactly what was going on, and brought the other department heads and old man Yamamoto in on it late last night."

He paused, and his voice became a little gentler. "It's not that I didn't trust you enough to tell you right away, Nanao, but we couldn't tell anyone. We didn't even tell the old man until about 10 last night. By then there didn't seem to be any point in making you loose sleep when you'd be here soon enough." He leaned back in his chair again, closing his eyes briefly.

Nanao studied him for a moment, still trying to come to terms with everything she'd just heard. She had been momentarily hurt that he hadn't asked her to come in – she'd worked on the Karakura contract, and might have been able to help spot anomalies – but it was clear that he hadn't intended to leave her out. In fact she was a little surprised at how quickly he had picked up the twinge of hurt that must have shown on her face. And he'd trusted her to tell her now, and now that she knew what was going on, Nanao intended to help take some of the weight off his shoulders.

She adjusted her glasses as if gearing up for battle and said briskly, "Well, who else knows?"

Shunsui opened his eyes, turning them up to the ceiling as he thought. "The old man, myself, the other department heads, and you. And Kira, Shuuhei, and Hinamori, of course. They had to be told."

"O-only us?"

He smiled. "I did say I trusted you, Nanao."

She blinked, but resettled her glasses again and went on. "Well, in that case, would it be possible for me to talk to Rangiku and Kira about it? All three of us have worked on the Karakura project."

"I would appreciate you looking through things, Nanao, but I don't know if you can work with them yet – Kira and the others are being debriefed, and I don't know if Rangiku has been told yet." He sighed again. "Nanao, you should know that Kira, Hisagi and Hinamori are under a lot of suspicion right now – it may not be possible for you to talk to any of them for quite a while."

Nanao was shocked. Of course, it made sense, given that it was their immediate superiors who had just left the company, presumably with valuable information, but still, it was impossible for her to imagine Momo doing anything remotely duplicitous. Of course, a week ago she would have said the same was true of Aizen, but still …

She hesitated, then said. "Mr. Kyouraku, what do you think?"

"About Hisagi and the others?"

"Yes."

"I think there's been too much suspicion already. They'll be hurting as much as anyone, probably more."

Nanao thought of Momo, always bubbling over with her admiration and devotion to Aizen. Rangiku used to tease her for having such a huge crush on her boss. Momo had always protested laughingly that she admired him in a strictly professional sense, but … and Hisagi, who had worked under Tousen since coming to Sereitei nearly ten years ago, and Kira, who was in a similar situation, and – oh no, thought Nanao, filled with a sudden horror. What about Rangiku? Nanao had suspected for months that the red-head was secretly attached to Gin, for all her proclamations of eternal single-hood. How would she handle this?

Shunsui watched her shrewdly. "You see the problem? Sereitei is a wonderful place to work because of how close-knit we are, but something like this …"

She nodded, slowly. But Nanao was not given to inaction, and her first shock was giving way to anger, anger that those three … things could have been so selfish, so cruel. She needed to do something about it. She pulled her shoulders back and said: "Then I'd better get to work. Would it help for me to look through all of my files on Karakura, since Gin seems to have been concerned with it somehow? Or I can do any research you think would be helpful."

Shunsui smiled. This was the reason that he had hired Nanao as his associate director in the first place: she never gave up. She was stubborn, his little Nanao, and pulled through. And so practical!

"Yes, I think that would help. We need to know exactly what the three of them know, because we think – Jyuu and Toshirou and I – that their first move is going to be at attempt to corner the Karakura market. It's big, and while we've got a contract with Urahara, I expect they're hoping to get in before we can. So it's imperative that we know what information they're working with so that we can predict what they're planning."

Nanao nodded, and stood up. "I'll get right to work." She turned, but paused for a moment at the door. "Sir, I think … I think you should get some rest. We'll, that is, Sereitei will need you around."

Nanao was blushing a little as she pulled the door shut. Really, she scolded herself, we're in the middle of a crisis and you're telling him to take a nap? And that was not a very professional way to express it. You should not be personally concerned about his health! Shaking her head, she walked briskly back towards her office.

A/N: Okay, this was a little longer than usual. And it's (probably) the second-to-last chapter. Thanks for waiting patiently, y'all!