READ THIS: Hey guys and gals. This chapter is kind of a bridge chapter, if you will. It's a collection of scenes to "bridge" the period between Kurotsuchi's sentencing and the next bit of story. Hope you enjoy it!

Chapter 18

Ikkaku, Yumichika, Iba and Gin were, strangely enough, all in their room, on their beds, studying. It was an odd occurrence; it was quite rare to have all four of them together in the same place at the same time. Three of them, sure, but Gin seemed to be the odd man out most of the time. It could have been his youth, it could have been his inherent creepiness. Whatever it was, it made it so that he was alone while the other three were thick as thieves.

It was on this afternoon of rare room mate togetherness when it happened. With no warning, their dormitory door banged open and framed in the doorway was a tiny blonde that was a rather prominent fixture in their lives. Usually, she was quite happy and bubbly, if a little annoyed at one of them in particular, but that wasn't the case that day.

That day, she looked positively livid. Her eyes practically glowed with her anger.

"What the hell were you thinking?" she snarled, pointing an accusatory finger at Ikkaku. He stared back in quiet defiance, quite used to Buffy ranting, raving and being generally pissed off at him.

"You're going to have to be more specific, Buff," he replied with a slight smirk as Buffy crossed the room to stand in front of him. "I've done a lot of stupid shit lately. Refresh my memory?"

"You. Messing. With. My. Love. Life. Again!" Buffy exclaimed, poking him in the chest between each word. With Ikkaku sitting down, she was actually taller than him and it was rather strange for them to have their roles reversed. "What the hell? Do you want me to break your jaw again?"

"How do you know it was me?" Ikkaku asked, arching an eyebrow. "It could have been Yumichika or Iba. Hell, even that crazy chick you sleep with seems overprotective of you. Or hey, Byakuya could have done it. Kid follows you around like a puppy."

A glare from Buffy stopped the other three males in the room to snicker at Ikkaku's comment, which they likely would have done if not faced with a homicidal looking blonde woman who could easily kick their asses.

"I don't sleep with her, we share a room. There's a big difference," Buffy said, rolling her eyes, wondering how much of an outrage she'd stir up if she'd used that phrasing in reference to them. Choking down a giggle at the imagery, she made sure her glare was back in place before continuing. "And I know it was you because you're the only person out of all of them who would corner them and chase them off by kicking their ass."

Buffy was seething. Not only was this the first decent sounding guy to speak to her since her little display the last time Ikkaku had meddled in her love life, he was the only guy outside of her little circle to speak to her after that display. Turns out, she was rather scary when angered and no one really wanted to set that off.

"You're obviously not man enough to realize that you're attracted to me," Buffy continued, on a roll.

"What?" Ikkaku exclaimed, but Buffy continued as if she hadn't heard him.

"Whether or not you want to bone me, until you man up and realize that fact you have no right to go anywhere near anyone who has any inkling to ask me out," Buffy snarled. "Stay the hell out!"

She turned and slammed the door shut before stalking down the corridor on her way out. She stopped when she heard the door open and close quietly. She turned to see, not Ikkaku, but Yumichika.

"He had a good reason to do what he did," he said quietly, closing the distance between them.

"Is he finally going to get off his ass?" Buffy asked.

"You know he has a hard time admitting feelings," Yumichika said with a fond smile. "And how do you even know he's attracted to you? Is there something you want to tell me?"

"I don't know," Buffy replied. "I thought it would rattle him or something. I'm good with the, you know, rattling."

"I think it might take more than a pissed off blonde to rattle him," Yumichika said.

"So, what's the excuse this time?" Buffy asked, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Well, it was Akimoto Atsushi that asked you out, wasn't it?" Yumichika asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Buffy replied warily. "Why? He seemed okay."

"Sure, he seems okay," Yumichika said. "But he's been talking. A lot. About stuff that he wanted to do to you. Awful stuff that no woman should be put through."

"Oh," Buffy said, her voice small.

"Yeah, oh," Yumichika said. "I told you, he had a good reason to kick his ass. I only regret that he got to him first."

"Huh," Buffy said. "So, the overviolent butthole actually cares."

"Yeah, but don't spread it around," Yumichika said conspiratorially.

"Secret's safe with me," Buffy replied, dragging her fingers across her lips as if zipping them shut.

xoxoxo

The class was lined up in front of targets. This particular lesson was to be used for offensive Kido target practice, and so far it wasn't going too well for Buffy. She couldn't seem to get the power up for one measly fire ball spell, not one.

"Maybe you should try the full incantation, Ayasegawa," Ayame suggested as she walked by Buffy, noticing that she was having problems. "I always find that going back to the basics helps when I'm trying to get that one spell down."

Buffy sighed and held out her hand in front of her, perfectly still. Closing her eyes, she began chanting, voice soft but clear.

"Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south! Shakkaho!"

KA-BOOM!

The entire class looked at her, some snickering at what they saw. Instead of a perfectly formed fire ball hitting the target, the spell had backfired and blown up in Buffy's face, literally. She was covered head to foot in soot, and Buffy was certain that she had a couple of burns, even if she couldn't feel them. A bark of laughter drew her attention and surprise, surprise, Ikkaku was doubled over and laughing so hard that tears were running down his cheeks. She stalked over to him and he stopped laughing instantly, looking at him apprehensively.

"I'd like to see you do better, Ikkaku," Buffy said, irritated. He gulped before turning and facing the target, concentrating hard before saying the incantation.

KA-BOOM!

Now, it was Buffy's turn to laugh, giggling like mad now that she and Ikkaku matched. He took that opportunity to tackle her to the ground. Rolling around in the grass, they were completely disrupting the class as everyone was paying attention to their fight and not their spells. It wasn't until Ayame split them up, using Kido to bind them.

"I've never had two more disruptive students," she said, all motherly advice and affection gone. She released the Kido on them. "Get out and don't come back until you can get along."

Grumbling, they both got to their feet and left the Kido training grounds, glaring at each other.

"It was totally your fault," Buffy said when she thought they were out of earshot.

"Was not."

"Was too."

"Was not."

"Was too.!"

"ENOUGH! GET OUT!"

xoxoxo

"Come on," Rangiku said with a slight whine, dragging Buffy to the student sign up board. "If we don't sign up now we're not going to get a seat! We're gonna have to sit out in the hallway, and that's gonna suck!"

"You're joking, right?" Buffy asked, arching an eyebrow. "I can't see how a freakin' calligraphy class could be this popular."

"But it's taught by taught by Vice Captain Souske Aizen of the Fifth Division!" Rangiku exclaimed excitedly. "Have you seen him? He's got that geeky sexy thing going on. And he's so nice, apparently. Not at all stuck up like some of the other higher ups."

"You're signing up for a calligraphy class because some hot guy teaches it?" Buffy asked. She rolled her eyes. "Somehow, I'm not surprised. Let me guess, most of the people in this class are girls?"

"Maybe," Rangiku replied. "And why aren't you surprised?"

"Hel-lo, you're all with the boy craziness," Buffy said with a snort. "You're just damn lucky you don't have an army of overprotective guys keeping you away from the boys."

"So, will you sign up with me?" Rangiku said. "I don't want to do this alone, and you know Gin isn't going to do this with me."

"Fine," Buffy replied, scribbling her name on the class list. She saw that there were at least twenty five other names before hers, and Rangiku had told her that the sign up sheet had been put up just that morning.

A couple of days later the class began. Even though they were early, there were people already milling around the classroom. All of them girls, most of them in higher classes than Buffy and Rangiku. When the door opened, Rangiku, being a bit taller than most of the other girls, elbowed her way into the portion of the crowd that was sure to get seats. All Buffy had to do was stay in her wake to make sure she didn't get lost.

"Come on, we'll sit over here," Rangiku said, striding up the risers until they found the middle seats in the middle row. "See, perfect view, even for you."

"You did not just make a short joke," Buffy grumbled as she got out her paper, brushes and ink as the rest of the class settled around them.

"Not directly," Rangiku replied cheerfully as she followed Buffy's lead. Buffy stuck her tongue out at her taller friend as the class went silent.

Vice Captain Souske Aizen had arrived.

He panned the room with his eyes, taking in his students for this particular class. Buffy took the opportunity to look him up and down. He was wearing the standard black Shinigami uniform with an armband on his arm, much like Hiyori Sarugaki of the Twelfth Division had when she had sat in on Buffy's testimony. He was tall, with brown hair, brown eyes and glasses. He did, as Rangiku had said, have the sort of geeky sexy thing going on. As Buffy tried to figure him out, his gaze locked on hers.

"Oh," Buffy said softly, surprised at the jolt of power that rushed through her. It was as if he were looking into her very soul, and she wondered what he saw there. He seemed almost perplexed as he regarded her for a few moments before he turned his attention to the rest of the class, beginning his lecture as if nothing had happened.

"See, I told you he was geeky sexy," Rangiku whispered in her ear excitedly.

"Yeah. Yeah," Buffy said absently, a little dazed. That jolt of power, that feeling of having her soul searched, would haunt her for a good long while.

xoxoxo

"Welcome to the Second Division."

Buffy looked up at the grand doors before her. This wasn't the first squad headquarters she'd been to. She'd seen both the Twelfth Division (which she hoped never to see again) and the Sixth Division when she was with Byakuya and he'd had to find his father.

The Second Division, however, was by far one of the best looking.

"Come on Buffy, let me show you around," Yoruichi said, grabbing Buffy gently by the arm as she led her into the headquarters. There were people around, there were always people around in squad headquarters, some dressed in the standard Shinigami uniform and others were dressed like classic ninjas. "The Onmitsukido," Yoruichi explained when she saw Buffy staring at the people dressed like ninjas. "The Covert Ops, you could say. The head of the Shihoin family is usually the head of the Onmitsukido. It's just luck that I ended up captain of the Second Division as well."

"Ah," Buffy said, not really sure what else to say. She wondered why Yoruichi had invited her to see the Second Division, and she still didn't have her question answered. She knew that some squads personally recruited certain students, and while she and Yoruichi had a careful friendship due to their connection with Byakuya, it was a little early for her to be recruited to a squad, right? She was only in second year, after all, even if she was in the first class.

"Oh hey, look, it's Kisuke!" Yoruichi said, dragging Buffy to a young looking blond man wearing the standard Shinigami uniform. "Buffy, I'd like you to meet Kisuke Urahara, my Third Seat and head of the Detention Corps of the Onmitsukido and a very old friend of mine. Kisuke, this is Buffy Ayasegawa."

"Always great to meet Yoruichi's friends," Kisuke said with a grin and a wave, his cheeks turning a little pink.

"Nice to meet you," Buffy returned with a smile.

"Here, let me give you a tour," Yoruichi said before turning to Kisuke. "Would you like to join us?"

"Sure!" Kisuke replied. "I need to check in with the guards at the Nest of Maggots later, but until then I'm free."

"Uh before we start on a long walk, could you maybe point me in the direction of the little girl's room?" Buffy asked, a little sheepish.

"Sure, down the hall, second door to the right," Yoruichi replied, pointing. "We'll be waiting here when you get back."

"Thanks so much," Buffy replied, before turning and rushing down the hallway. She went into the bathroom, did her business and exited as quickly as she could. She exited and headed back to where Yoruichi and Kisuke said they would be waiting, but to her surprise they weren't there. She looked around, hoping that they had just wandered off a short distance to deal with some higher up squad thing. She thought she saw Kisuke's blond head and was about to go over and see if it was him when a small woman stepped in front of her.

This woman was definitely small, shorter than Buffy even, and had a very slight build. She had chin length hair and was dressed in the ninja uniform Buffy had seen earlier, only without the face mask or the head covering.

"What business do you have here?" she asked. Her voice was businesslike, neither polite nor outwardly rude, although it was obvious to Buffy that this woman didn't think she belonged here at all.

"Yoruichi brought me here to show me around," Buffy replied. "Why, I have no clue."

Before she knew it, she was up against the wall with a forearm on her throat. The tiny ninja woman was glaring up at her with such loathing and Buffy wondered what the hell she had said to anger her so.

"You are to treat Yoruichi-sama with respect," she said through clenched teeth. "You do not have the position or standing to speak to Yoruichi-sama so informally."

"Buffy, I can't leave you alone for five minutes, can I?" Yoruichi said with a laugh as she spotted the two small women together. "Let her go, Soifon, she means no harm."

The small ninja woman, Soifon, let Buffy go, although she still looked at Buffy with loathing. She turned on her heel and stalked off, colour high on her cheeks.

"Who was that?" Buffy asked, rubbing her neck. The woman was strong and would probably have crushed her windpipe if she had fought back.

"Soifon," Yoruichi replied. "One of my personal bodyguards. Makes it her personal mission to make sure everyone treats me with the respect she believes I deserve."

"Do I have to call you Yoruichi-sama now?" Buffy asked with a smirk.

"Only when Soifon's in earshot, unless you want that to happen once again," Yoruichi replied, gesturing to Buffy's throat. "Are you going to be okay?"

"I've had worse," Buffy replied, thinking of all the times she had been bitten by vampires, choked by demons and had freakin' died. "So, how about that tour, huh?"

xoxoxo

She was supposed to be meeting Yumichika outside of his dormitory building; they were supposed to be spending some time with each other, having neglected their sibling time in the last few weeks. Sighing, she knew he was late. Tired of waiting for him, she turned and entered the building. She was there so often now that she never really turned heads when other occupants of the dormitory anymore. She climbed the stairs to Yumichika's room, opening the door without knocking. The guys knew by now to keep at least a pair of pants on at all times in the off chance she dropped by unannounced.

However, Yumichika wasn't in the room. Neither were Ikkaku nor Iba. The only person in the room was a small, silver haired boy. Gin Ichimaru.

They regarded each other for a few moments. Buffy had never been alone in a room with him before; she made a conscious effort to because the kid creeped her out. She was glad Rangiku didn't hang out with him in their room, although she knew they were really good friends. As he regarded her now, she fought the urge to run away and never come back to this room.

"Uh hi," she said awkwardly. "You haven't seen Yumichika, haven't you?"

"Nah, sorry Buffy," Gin replied, creepy smile on his face. "Saw him leave a couple of minutes ago."

"All right, I'll just make with the going now," Buffy said, gesturing weakly to the door behind her.

"Hey, Buffy," Gin said as she turned to leave. "Ya don't like me much, do ya?"

"I don't know you well enough to like or dislike you," Buffy replied, lying through her teeth. Gin stared at her for a few moments, and as she left she got the feeling that he could see right through her lie.

xoxoxo

The exams were finished, everyone had passed everything with flying colours and the party was in full swing. The sake was endless, the conversation was flowing and it was the first time that all of them were completely relaxed. Rangiku had ditched Buffy ages ago and was chatting (making out) with a nice looking upperclassman in an out of the way corner of the room. Grumbling to herself, she spotted Ikkaku sitting by himself. Smirking slightly to herself, she crossed the room, cup of sake in one hand.

"What are you doing here all by your lonesome?" Buffy asked, trailing her fingers across the back of his neck before she sat down next to him. She'd had enough to drink that she was a little more open and flirty, but not so much that she didn't know what she was doing.

"What are you doing here?" he asked sullenly, taking a long pull from his glass. "Shouldn't you be off giggling with Rangiku or something?"

"She ditched me for a dude," Buffy replied, gesturing to the corner where they were canoodling. "Wonder what the hell happened to chicks before dicks."

Ikkaku looked at her strangely and before Buffy could react, his lips crashed onto hers. It was a battle of lips, teeth and tongue, a year of frustration between the two of them being hashed out with their lips. His fingers in her hair, hers massaging his scalp. Somehow, between Buffy nibbling in Ikkaku's earlobes and Ikkaku attacking Buffy's neck with his lips, they ended upstairs, in his bed. Together.

The next morning Buffy woke up with a pounding headache and squished onto a single bed with someone she really ought not be in a bed with. Groaning, she stirred, jumping out of the bed when Ikkaku began to stir.

"What are you doing here?" Ikkaku asked, glaring at her.

"What am I doing here?" Buffy retorted, eyes narrowed. "What the hell do you mean, what am I doing here? You're the one that carried me up here!"

"Yeah, right, like I'd do that," Ikkaku retorted with a snort. "More like you begged me. You've wanted me since the moment you met me."

"You started it! You lip raped me," Buffy shot back. "And the only thing I've wanted to do since I've met you is give you a sound ass kicking."

"It's not rape if both parties are willing. I don't remember you pushing me away," Ikkaku said. "And like you could."

"I so totally could," Buffy retorted. "And you still started it."

"I was drunk," Ikkaku replied. "Yeah, we were drunk. We can blame that."

"Sure, yeah, sounds good," Buffy said. "We never mention it again?"

"Agreed."

xoxoxo

So, that's chapter 18. It's kind of bad, but I needed something to bridge the two main plot points, and this is the only way I thought I could think of to do it without it being too jarring. I can see five chapters, maximum, before this fic can be marked as completed. The sequel might take a while; while I do have a lot of it already written, I'm going to have to edit and rearrange a lot of it to fit it around all of the other stuff I've included in here.

Anyway, as sucky as it is I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Hope to get something up pretty soon, seeing as I want to finish this off before I start NaNo this year.