Disc. : Tite Kubo not me

#5- Waltz

He was hiding something. She just knew it. Behind all of his lazy antics and the playful attitude, he was still a scientist. Seretei could strip him of all the titles they wanted but he would still be the same captain with the determination to match. Besides, she rationalized, why put up the persona if there weren't something to hide?

Though, Rukia supposed, she wasn't one to talk.After all, how many times had she put on that flawless Kuchiki mask or adopted the dutiful shingami routine? Even now, she was throwing up pretenses.

Pretenses and personas are just means to an end.

Anything to find out what he was keeping from her. So, she found reasons to keep wandering past his store. There was equipment that just seemed to keep breaking, orders that needed to be checked up on and there were definitely questions to be answered. Just not the ones she wanted to ask.

At night they started to run into each other habitually. No longer did they make up excuses. They simply greeted each other and chatted lightly about the day, eventually falling into the companionable silence. All the time, she watched him. She just never realized he watched her, too.

Once when the stars were particularly bright, the silence was broken.

"So, how much longer do you think you have?"

She eyed him narrowly. "You know Soul Society even better then I do and you're asking that question?"

His grin was not one of the boisterous shopkeeper. "If you had a choice would you stay?"

Rukia looked down. "I don't know."

He nodded. "Sometimes I wonder myself if had I the chance to return…"

Would you really take it...

In the weeks that she had been here, Soul Society grew farther and farther away as if the period between now and then were bridged by some immense chasm. Here you could be anyone you wanted, be yourself and still have friends without those political entanglements. And even though she would say otherwise to Ichigo, humans were not stupid.

Bit by bit, she was wondering how she could go back to Soul Society.

"The human world really is not as bad as they claimed it to be."

"Most things aren't." He shrugged. "You'll notice that Soul Society has a tendency to over-exaggerate."

She looked at him. The sight of him in the moonlight was now familiar sight. If Kisuke were the way Soul Society had made him out to be she doubted he would have helped her as he had. That he'd even be sitting with her now.

She would miss him.

"I suppose I would like to stay in the human world." It was the first time she admitted it out loud.

"With Ichigo?" There was something veiled underneath the tease.

"I-" she paused. "I really don't know. I mean I can't intrude upon his life forever."

He eyed her carefully.

"Besides, I would miss being a shinigami." Rukia smiled whimsically. "That's the thing about humans. I can't imagine what it would be like to die a meaningless death."

"You want to die in battle?"

Rukia's smirk was tinted with a bit of irony. "I don't think it can be helped. Trouble is where I live."

A clouded look passed over his eyes, as if he were reconsidering his words.

The secret.

"I don't think you or I will die peaceful deaths."

She wondered what he meant by it, but that look in his eyes and dark night kept her silent.

Many nights would pass and they would continue their dance around the other. He knowing the all the steps, she dancing to his cue. It was to Rukia's folly that she never had the courage to ask.

AN: Another drabble born in the dead of the night! Woo! More slow relationship development. Tee hee, I love dangling the horrible truth just outside of Rukia's grasp. (maniacal author laughter). Anyways, should be changing soon… I think. Btw… sorry for typos. Hasn't been checked but I will probably edit this in a day or so. Either way, please Review!!!

Edit! 2/18/07

Sayuristang