A/N: Sorry for taking so long to update. I hope you like it. Let me know what you think. It's crazy to think I have over 800 views and only 12 reviews. It makes me wonder if this sucks.

Chapter 6

The next week went by in a blur for Rangiku. She had been as busy as she could be. Between paperwork, patrols, meetings, and Bankai training she was proud to say she hadn't even thought about sake. Unfortunately, she also hadn't had time to think about her blind date which was tomorrow at seven at the Dragon Palace Restaurant.

It was almost lunch time and Rangiku was just finishing up with her paperwork for the morning when Captain Shunsui Kyoraku and Lieutenant Ise Nanao walked into the squad ten barracks. "Hey Guys!" She greeted them, "What brings you here?" At this point Captain Hitsugaya looked up from his paperwork and said, "Yes. What brings you here? I do not recall having scheduled a meeting?" Shunsui just laughed as Nanao said, "Sir, I told you to call ahead." "How are you today Toshiro?" Shunsui asked walking over to sit on the couch that sat in the center of the office. "I am well. And it's Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya to you." Toshiro really hated when people didn't use his official title. "Well Captain Hitsugaya, I have come to ask you what plans you have for your Lieutenant this afternoon."

Hitsugaya looked over at Rangiku, whom was looking at him, most likely wondering what he was going to say. He knew she had been working hard. He had never seen her so dedicated. She was making leaps and bounds in the right direction. The only thing he felt she still needed to work on was her Bankai. It was still proving to be difficult for her to focus and meditate on the spiritual side of her training. Maybe she needed a small break. "I believe a little break will do her some good. She has been working hard so I see no problem in letting her have the remainder of the day off." At hearing this Rangiku squealed in delight, jumped up, and ran over to smother her little captain in one of her infamous hugs. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She said.

Toshiro squirmed free yelling while Shunsui and Rangiku were laughing, "Enough with the hugs!" They all knew he didn't mean it. Everyone was just glad to see that even though Rangiku was learning to be more serious, she was still a child at heart. She would always enjoy being silly.

Once the trio had set out, Shunsui had given both Nanao and Rangiku money for food and shopping before heading back over to his own barracks to bully his third seat into doing his paperwork. Nanao and Rangiku then decided to have lunch before hitting up all the best shopping boutiques in the area.

While they were sitting down to eat Rangiku asked, "Do you have any idea who the mystery man is supposed to be?" Nanao just smiled and replied, "I don't have the slightest idea. I do know you are to meet him tomorrow night at The Dragon Palace Restaurant at seven o'clock. You're to give your name to the person at the front desk and they will escort you to a private room where you will meet your date." Rangiku was relieved and nervous at the same time at this news. She was relieved because she wouldn't have an audience to see how embarrassed she was and nervous because she didn't like the idea of being alone with a strange man she didn't know.

"Does he know who I am?" Rangiku asked. Nanao then said, "No. He is just as in the dark as you are." Rangiku sighed and said, "Well that's good to know. At least we will both be on even ground. But I haven't the slightest idea of what I should wear. That's the best restaurant in the whole Soul Society. Obviously, I need a dress. But how should I do my hair? What about my nails? Shoes? Nanao! What should I do?" At hearing Rangiku so panicked Ise laughed and said, "You were voted best dressed in the Women's Association ten years in a row. I'm sure we will find you something. Don't go too over the top. Just be you." Rangiku smiled and gave Ise a hug while saying, "Thank you Ise."

After lunch they hopped from shop to shop searching for the perfect outfit. After trying on dress after dress they had finally found the perfect one. Then they went looking for shoes to match and then to jewelry. When they finished shopping Ise then took Rangiku to get her nails done where she settled for a natural looking French manicure with a matching pedicure. Finally the pair went to a hair salon where Rangiku decided to trim her ends and get a deep conditioning treatment.

Afterwards, they dropped their stuff off at their quarters before heading over to a Women's Association meeting. Again it was in the underground rooms beneath the Kuchiki manor. They were the last to arrive. Everyone else was already seated in their places. Yachiru was at the head of the room with a bag of treats. Rukia had dinner brought in from the manor. It helped that Byakuya was out for the evening. He usually didn't approve of such things. Especially involving his household.

After Rangiku took her seat, Nanao stepped towards the front of the room to address the meeting. "As you all know next week will be the Cherry Blossom Festival. It was decided at our last meeting that we will have a dunk tank along with our usual kissing booth. We already have the kissing booth. It just needs a fresh coat of paint. Who will be in charge of repainting the kissing booth?" Everyone looked around. Then Captain Unohana spoke saying, "I think Lieutenant Kotetsu and Third Seat Kotetsu should paint it again this year. They did such a beautiful job last year." Everyone agreed and the sisters both said a polite thank you to the Squad Four Captain. Then while Nanao continued, "Now, does anyone know where we could possibly get a dunk tank?" This time it was Yoruichi who spoke us saying, "I will purchase one and donate it to the Women's Association." Everyone was excited to hear this. Especially Yachiru who stopped eating to yell, "Thank you Kitty Lady!"

After that big announcement, Nanao then moved on to the next order of business, "Now that we have both a dunk tank and a kissing booth we will need to figure out who will be working the two booths. Any preferences?" Everyone began to chatter amongst themselves till Yoruichi said, "I'd prefer to work the dunk tank along with Sui-Feng." Sui-Feng nodded in agreement. Rukia also volunteered herself for this task along with Third Seat Kotetsu. Everyone else would be stationed at the kissing booth. Which usually had four lines going at a time. It was agreed that they would all be working in shifts. So that everyone had a chance to go out and enjoy the festivities.

While the Women's Association was meeting, Byakuya was taking his usual evening stroll. He had received a note earlier that day with his instructions for his date along with a detailed list of ways Yoruichi would make his life a living hell if he backed out or left early. Byakuya was a mess. He found he had a hard time concentrating at the office and then decided to go blow some steam off at the training arena where he felt the need to beat poor Renji to a pulp. It did help him feel a little better but not by much. He then decided that he would eat a quick dinner at a small café on the way home from work then head out for his evening walk.

He tried hard to clear his mind but it was difficult. He hadn't been on a date since he had formally began courting his late wife. He had no intentions of pursuing this random woman and planned to make that point perfectly clear upon her arrival at the restaurant. He then planned to be as polite as possible the remainder of the date for the sake of keeping the reputation of a gentleman.

When he finally headed home he noticed that Rukia was just getting in as well. She greeted him first as usual, "Brother. How was your evening?" He replied, "Well enough. How was yours?" Rukia then said, "I had a very productive day. Tomorrow evening I will be out doing prep work for next week's festivities." To which Byakuya replied, "Very well. I will retire for the evening. I too will be out tomorrow evening for an important business meeting."

Rukia knew exactly what this "business meeting" was. Renji had informed her that Captain Kyoraku had arranged the date and had everything set up. Rukia was still a little upset that she didn't know who the mystery woman was but was hoping that everything would work out in the end. She wanted her brother to be happy. She also hoped that if Byakuya was busy dating, she could focus more on her relationship with Renji. It killed her that she wasn't able to discuss all of this with her friends. Shunsui had said that she and Renji had to keep the information about the date to themselves lest it ruin the surprise. She bid her brother goodnight before heading to her room.

The next day was fairly busy for both Rangiku and Byakuya. Work kept their nerves at bay. Byakuya went from meeting to meeting, gave two lectures at the academy, oversaw training, and had a practice match with his third seat since Renji was still recovering from the sparring session from the day before. For lunch, he chose to accompanied Rukia and Renji to a small restaurant, much to both of their dismay. It was a quiet affair and once lunch was finished he told her he would probably not see her again till the next day. Byakuya then went to another meeting before heading back to his barracks to do his paperwork so he could go home and prepare for his date.

Since Byakuya never half assed anything in his life he still wanted to dress his best even though in his mind this wasn't a real date. He chose a nice suit and tie ensemble. He chose not to wear his family's priceless scarf because he didn't want it to clash with his suit. His hair was swept into its usual style with his kinseikan. He always looked classy and elegant, this night was not going to be an exception.

Across the Seireitei Rangiku was getting ready too. She had spent a majority of her day working. Mostly paperwork and a couple of meetings about security for the festival the next week, but she stayed busy the majority of the day. She managed to get off a few hours early when her Captain received a message from Captain Kyoraku. He didn't say what the message said but gave her the remainder of the day off nonetheless.

At the moment she was applying her make up while Ise was brushing her hair. Nanao had promised to go over to help her get ready and to calm her nerves if need be. To someone who didn't know her you'd think she was all confidence, but Ise could tell Rangiku was nervous. As she brushed the strawberry blondes hair she said, "Rangiku. You look beautiful." When Rangiku heard her friend say this she took a deep breath and said, "Thank you. Hopefully my mystery man thinks so too." Then she gave a nervous laugh. Nanao put her hand on Rangiku's shoulder in a reassuring gesture while stating, "He'd have to be blind not to. You're undoubtedly the most beautiful woman in the Soul Society." Rangiku smiled while she finished up her make up.

Once Rangiku was dressed and ready to go, Ise escorted her to the restaurant. Rangiku had escorted her to the restaurant on her first date with Shunsui so it was the least she could do. When they arrived at The Dragon Palace it was already ten after the appointed time. As she walked into the lobby area of the restaurant she began fidgeting with the hem of her dress. You don't think my dress is too short for a place like this do you?" Rangiku asked nervously. Nanao just gave a light laugh. "You look amazing Rangiku. It's okay to be nervous. You can breathe." At that moment Rangiku released the breath that she didn't even know she was holding and gave her best friend a hug and said, "Thank you Ise." Then she gave her name to woman at the front who was taking names. "Right this way Ms. Matsumoto. Your private dining room is this way." She motioned for Rangiku to follow her. Rangiku looked to her friend and said, "Well. It's now or never!" She then gave a nervous laugh. "I'll come by tomorrow and tell you all about it." With that said she waved goodbye to her friend to follow the woman to the private dining room.

By Byakuya's standards the date was already off to a poor start. He arrived right on time. He was disappointed that it was already almost fifteen minutes after seven and his date had yet to appear. Just as he was about to get up to excuse himself to leave the door rolled open to reveal the same woman who had ushered him to the dining room he was now sitting in. The next sight he saw was breathtaking. Next to her was none other than Rangiku Matsumoto. Her expressive features reviled that she was just as confused as he was.

A/N: Yep. I just attempted a cliffy. Tell me what you think. Feedback is welcomed. Rudeness is not.