Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of the related titles.

A/N: Hey everyone! Surprise! I'm alive! I've forced myself to continue writing, because I've recently discovered that I have like no homework, ever. And because I have no english classes anymore, my creativity is starting to build up and I needed a way to let it all out. And then I remembered that my poor readers haven't had anything to read in a while. SO! I'm back! I promise! I'm going to try and keep this updated as much as possible! So I hope you all enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 12: Not Part of the Plan

"I'm…sorry about all this, Ran-chan," Gin said, slowly closing the door behind him. "I didn't know this was going to be part of the plan."

"Right," Rangiku replied coolly, her back still to him. She wasn't angry at him. She was angry at herself. Once again, she'd played right into his hands, and once again others were in danger because of her selfish desires.

Gin sighed heavily, his back against the door. He'd been telling the truth. He didn't know Aizen was going to pull something like this. In fact, he had actually been planning on avoiding returning to Aizen. He was tired of having to choose between the two most important people in his life.

"Ran-chan…" he started toward her slowly.

She didn't respond this time. He moved closer to her, gently pushing her hair from her neck, his lips just barely dancing across her skin. She trembled violently, before turning her head to him slightly.

"Please, go away," she whispered.

"You don't really want me to go away," he breathed, his arms slipping around her waist.

Rangiku went rigid, her elbows locking to her sides a second too slow. Although his arms were trapped beneath hers, she showed no signs of enjoying their presence. He ignored this, however, continuing to kiss her neck softly.

"No, Gin," she shook her head. "This time, I would really like you to go away."

He heard her sniffle slightly before he pulled away, staring at her back, defeated. He couldn't push it this time. He'd just put her in the exact position he promised he wouldn't put her in.

"I'm sorry…" he whispered again.

As he turned to leave, Rangiku rose to her feet. "Why did you lie to me?"

He stopped, not turning back to face her. "I didn't…" he responded honestly.

"Stop it, Gin," she said roughly. "Just stop lying to me and tell me the goddamn truth. Why did you lie to me? Why am I here right now?"

Gin shook his head. He had many assumptions, each one as terrible as the next, but as far as planning went, Aizen was the only one who knew what was happening from here on in. He, Gin Ichimaru, was completely out of the loop.

"You're askin' the wrong villain, love," he replied calmly, finally turning to face her.

Rangiku shook her head, unsure of what to believe. Finding it impossible to look him in the eyes, she continued to stare at a faint crack in the wall. Gin didn't speak, waiting for her to change her mind on forcing him out.

"He's going to use me for something," she said finally. "I'm not stupid."

Gin nodded. "I'm aware of that."

"People are going to die," she continued.

"I am also aware of that," he agreed, reluctantly.

"And it's all going to be my fault," she said softly. "I can't believe I feel for that. I should have known that it wasn't Captain Hitsugaya. I should have know."

As she fell back to her seat, Gin moved swiftly to her side. "You couldn' have known, love. There's no way. Aizen knows what he's doing, and he's damn good at it," he said. "If anyone dies, it ain't gonna be your fault. Get that outta your head."

"Well, well, well…isn't this cute?"

Gin looked up quickly to see Aizen standing in the doorway. His arms were crossed as he stared at the pair in front of him. Gin moved to stand, but it was much too late. Any suspicion he had of a relationship between the two of them had been confirmed, ten-fold. Rangiku immediately looked away.

"Would you care if I had a little bit of alone time with your girlfriend, Gin?" Aizen raised an eyebrow innocently.

Gin didn't respond. He glanced sideways at Rangiku, who was still avoiding both of their gazes, and got to his feet. Aizen closed the door behind him and turned back to face the silent girl.

"You know, this wasn't part of our original plan," he started carefully. "You weren't supposed to have anything to do with this."

Rangiku still refused to speak. She didn't want to hear anything he had to say, although it did seem to line up with what Gin had claimed, which only bothered her even more. If it wasn't supposed to have happened this way, then why had they brought her there?

"Would you rather be on trial right now, potentially facing execution for treason?" he asked, as if he could read her mind. When Rangiku looked up, he laughed a little. "I didn't think so."

Rangiku shook her head. "I don't understand. Why'd you bring me back here? Why didn't you just let them take me?"

Aizen crossed the room, his arms folded across his chest as he searched for a reason. He knew Gin would be listening in outside the closed door, so he had to choose carefully.

"If we lost you, we would have lost Gin too," he responded. "Although the man's a pain in my ass, he's brilliant, and I'm not willing to risk losing him just yet."

Rangiku scoffed. She knew just as well as everyone else did that Aizen was brighter than any of the other Captain's, and if he wanted to take over the Soul Society, he could do it with his eyes closed. It wasn't Gin he needed.

"You needed me," Rangiku whispered.

Aizen turned slightly. "Excuse me?"

"You needed me," she repeated. "I'm your free ticket into the Soul Society whenever you please. You were using him to get to me."

Aizen raised a thin eyebrow. "Interesting theory, Ran-chan," his voice had a distinct tone of mockery. "I only wish the thought process behind your capture had been that thorough. If it had, then perhaps I wouldn't have to worry about explaining your disappearance."

Rangiku opened her mouth to speak, but he raised a hand to silence her.

"That doesn't mean, however, that the idea of using you to our benefit has not crossed my mind," he continued. "You won't have to stay here, but you will not be allowed to return either."

Rangiku looked confused. She didn't quite understand what he meant. Finally, he had turned completely toward her, his face no longer remotely friendly. Seeing him, for the first time in ages, was a weird experience that didn't set well with her stomach. The man before her was not the one she'd once respected. In fact, she was now convinced that this man was instead a monster merely taking his form. It made everything so much easier. The Aizen she knew would never have done something like this.

"You will be instructed to return for short periods of time, but you will be under strict surveillance. You'd be surprised who I have working for me," he explained. "You won't be the only one sneaking around."

"What is it I'll have to do?" she asked, looking hesitant. "Getting information is fine, but if you're asking me to kill someone, count me out."

"Honestly, Matsumoto, you're not exactly in the position to be calling the shots," he said dangerously. "But no, you won't be asked to kill anyone just yet. We just need to know how much the higher ups know. For now."

"Don't lie to her," Gin said, appearing in the now-open doorway.

Aizen looked up, his eyes narrowing a bit as he recognized his accomplice. "I'm not lying," he said shortly.

"You're havin' her tail someone," Gin's eyes weren't open, but it was clear that he was intending to glare at Aizen. "If you're goin' to have her work for you, your instructions oughta be clear. We all know you ain't exactly a forgiving person, Cap'n. One slip-up and it'll be off with her head."

Aizen didn't respond. He blinked slowly, as if daring Gin to continue.

"We will need you to get as close to Cap'n Kuchiki as possible," Gin shifted his focus to Rangiku. "Of course, you will not be able to start that high up, because right now you're a criminal. We need to build your reputation back up, startin' from the bottom. In time, you're goin' to be able to slip right into his office without question."

Rangiku didn't like the sound of that. No matter how influential she got, being able to speak to Captain Kuchiki without good reason was going to be nearly impossible. And Gin was right, if she messed up, it wasn't likely she'd be given a second chance.

"Got it?" Gin asked, his eyes still locked onto her.

She nodded shortly. Aizen made his way toward the doorway, not bothering to look back at her as he did so.

"I'll have an assignment for you in the morning," he said quietly. "For now, you're going to remain in here without complaint."

He stopped short when he reached Gin, turning only enough to speak to the skinny man. His voice was low and almost threatening.

"And as for you, I'm locking the door so there are no midnight visits," he said. "I like it quiet around here."

A/N: Hehehe. Do you really think that's going to keep Gin out? Tell me what you'd like to see happen, although I can pretty much expect it. I still wanna know. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and are still interested in the story. Thank you all for being so patient. You are amazing!