So I know I said I had the next few chapters almost written and it shouldn't take me too long to get them out but finals week started before I could finish and then I had to focus on that. BUT, I'm done and it's Christmas break and I only have one more semester before I graduate college! Woo! Hope you guys like this one! Sorry to disappoint literally everyone who told me who they thought the person at the end of the last chapter was in the reviews.

"And just what do you think you're doing?"

Rukia struggled against the grip the familiar man had on her. She recognized the voice immediately and was instantly filled with dread at the implications of being caught. She had no idea how she would explain this one away.

After enough struggling, the man released his hold on her and Rukia staggered away, slightly out of breath from the surprise. She finally turned her angry eyes toward him. "Christ, Uryuu. You scared the shit out of me! What the hell do you think you're doing?" she accused, trying to sound as though she wasn't in the wrong for sneaking around Ichigo's empty (or what she had thought was empty) office.

"I asked you first," Uryuu Ishida said, walking out from the shadows of the dark room so Rukia could finally see his accusatory gaze.

Rukia was silent for a few moments as she tried to think of some kind of excuse. Unfortunately, her brain was drawing a blank. "I-I was just…looking for…something," she offered, knowing how lame it sounded.

"And just what something were you looking for Ms. Kuchiki?" Ishida asked, encroaching further upon Rukia's personal space. She backed up as he walked closer, until eventually her backside hit Ichigo's large desk.

"T-that's between Ichigo and I," Rukia said, trying her best to sound confident even though she was scared out of her mind.

"Really? Are you sure?" Uryuu asked accusingly.

"Yes, he had me look for something for him."

"Hm, that's interesting. Kurosaki usually doesn't let just anyone go perusing through his office, you know. He has enough important documents in here to make sure only the right people have access. Only a few have the key to get in here, myself included."

"Well, he trusts me enough to let me in. He had a special key made for me," Rukia lied, knowing that this was going downhill pretty fast.

"Really? You know, not even Ichigo's sisters have access to his office. He must really have faith in you, huh?"

"I-I guess so," Rukia said.

Uryuu took another step toward the practically trembling girl and stared her down so much so that Rukia practically felt like she was melting under his sharp gaze.

"This all still sounds a little suspicious to me. You wouldn't mind if I called Ichigo and confirmed all of this with him, would you?" Uryuu asked.

Rukia knew that he would suggest that and she knew that it would be the final nail in her coffin. There was no way she could explain this and she knew that Uryuu (who she figured was already suspicious) now knew who she really answered to.

Uryuu pulled out his phone while Rukia remained silent. As he began to dial the number, Rukia knew she had to stop him. She couldn't let Ichigo know she was here.

"No, don't!" she said quickly, stopping Uryuu in his tracks and causing a self-satisfied smirk to pass across his face. Rukia silently groaned in defeat.

"Ah, just as I suspected. You know, you really need to work on your lying skills, Ms. Kuchiki," Uryuu said as he put his cell phone back in his pocket.

"Tell me something I don't know," she muttered as she tried to focus her attention on anything other than the man currently grilling her.

"I'll ask you again. Why are you here?"

Rukia sighed and answered. "You know why I'm here."

"Yes, I'm aware that Aizen sent you but what I want to know is why. What is he looking for?" Ishida asked, his voice taking on an even harsher tone.

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Why the hell do you think, Uryuu? You know Aizen sent me which means you should also know that I'm not allowed to give up any information."

"Is Aizen listening in right now?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"I don't know. Probably," Rukia said, figuring she wasn't going against Aizen's demands too much by telling Uryuu all this. He had probably figured most of this out on his own anyway. Uryuu Ishida was similar to Aizen in his cleverness and mental acuity.

"What does he have on you? What is he using to make you do this?"

"What makes you so sure he's using something? What makes you think I'm not doing this of my own volition?"

"Because I know you, Ms. Kuchiki. I can tell how much you care about Kurosaki and I know you wouldn't betray him like this that easily."

Rukia had to try her best to prevent a blush from spreading across her cheeks at that statement. Was it really that obvious?

"I ask again. What does Aizen have? Surely, you're not giving away his entire plan by telling me that much."

Rukia sighed. Uryuu was right about that. Maybe if Ishida knew what the stakes were, he'd understand her position better.

"It's not what Aizen has. It's who he has," Rukia admitted quietly.

A look of confusion passed across Ishida's face before he spoke. "Who does he have?"

Rukia took a deep breath and for the first time since Uryuu began his little interrogation, looked him straight in the eye. "My brother," she said quietly.

Realization dawned on Uryuu's face as he let that information sink in. Before he could speak, Rukia continued on. "My brother doesn't have his wealth to protect him anymore. He can't hire huge security details to watch out for him. He's an open target and far too easy for Aizen to get a hold of. We should've known Aizen would use my brother against me. Why wouldn't he?" Rukia said as her tone began to become more accusatory. Part of her blamed Ishida and Kurosaki for not seeing this coming.

"Yes, that one should've been obvious," Uryuu admitted, beating himself up that he didn't think of it before all of this happened.

"Aizen made me choose between Ichigo's wealth and my brother's life. Which one do you think I'm going to go for?" she asked.

"I understand," Uryuu admitted, feeling guilty for the first time since he had figured out what Aizen's plan with Rukia really was.

"In all honesty, I don't know what I was looking for. Aizen just wanted me to snoop around the office to see if I could find something useful. Chances are he's just keeping me busy until he can put his final plan into action. And I promise you I'm telling the truth when I say I don't know what that plan is. All I know is that Aizen wants to use me in some way."

"I see," Ishida commented quietly, letting all of this information mull around in his brain.

"You can't tell Ichigo that I was here, Uryuu," Rukia finally pleaded.

Uryuu eyed her warily. "Ichigo already knows you're being controlled by Aizen. We figured that out on our own. This just confirmed it."

"I know, but you just…" Rukia trailed off as she thought of the right words to say. She didn't want Ichigo to hate her for what she was doing but she also wanted to protect him in whatever way she was capable of. Aizen's request that she not ignore both Uryuu and Ichigo hung heavily in her mind.

"I won't tell him," Ishida said once he noticed the very obvious internal struggle the small, raven-haired woman was having before him.

Rukia looked up at Uryuu with appreciation.

"I've already told Ichigo to be suspicious of everything you say and do, but I can at least keep this a secret."

"Thank you, Uryuu," Rukia said sincerely.

"You're welcome. Now get out of here before Kurosaki comes back," Ishida warned, his eyes taking on that hard glint they'd had before.

"Right," Rukia nodded in affirmation as she grabbed her purse and made to leave the dark office.

"And Kuchiki?" Uryuu added before Rukia could leave.

"Yeah?"

"Tell Aizen he'll have to think of a better way to get Kurosaki's valuable company information. Ichigo has put me in charge of watching his office while he's away and the rest of the building has impeccable security."

Rukia scoffed at that. "Don't worry. Aizen will figure something out," she said dejectedly as she opened one of the double doors and left without another word.

Rukia braced herself as the elevator doors opened before her. With every step she took onto the top floor of the Kurosaki Corporations building, more and more guilt washed over her. Everything she had done for Aizen up until this point –the lying, sneaking around, and secrecy—was nothing compared to what she would have to do next. She would finally have to take advantage of the one thing she never wanted to compromise: Ichigo's feelings for her.

Aizen had instructed her to stop her silence and apologize to Ichigo for being distant, so that was what she was going to try and do. Her only comfort in all of this was that she knew Ichigo was aware of Aizen's influence over her and would hopefully see through her act.

She walked up to where Ichigo's secretary was typing away at her computer. She cleared her throat and the woman turned to give her a stern glare. Rukia practically withered underneath it. Maybe this was a bad idea.

"Um…hi. Is Mr. Kurosaki in his office right now?" the young woman tentatively asked.

"Yes, can I help you with something?" the secretary–Nanao she believed her name was—said.

"I just wanted to talk to him about…something," Rukia replied nervously.

Nanao's eyes narrowed at that. "Mr. Kurosaki is a very important and very busy man. He doesn't have all the time in the world to talk to lowly secretaries about something," she said in a condescending tone. Rukia thought it ironic that Nanao would make a comment like that given she was a secretary herself but, she figured, in the business world pecking order a secretary for a CEO was far above one for a head of human resources.

"Please, it's important," Rukia pleaded.

Nanao continued to look suspicious but eventually rolled her eyes, sighed, and picked up the desk phone. A few silent moments passed before she spoke. "Mr. Kurosaki? Ms. Kuchiki is here for you. She says she has something important to discuss with you."

Rukia fidgeted in her place standing in front of Nanao's desk during the palpable silence while Ichigo no doubt spoke on the other line. Finally, his secretary answered. "Alright, then. I'll let her know," she said as she placed the phone back on her desk.

"You can go in, but keep it short. Mr. Kurosaki has to be somewhere in half an hour."

Rukia nodded her head in understanding, gave a short thank you to Nanao that was, of course, not returned, and walked to the grand double doors she had started to become familiar with.

She took one last deep breath before her slightly trembling hand turned the knob and she entered through the door.

As she stepped foot into the office, she immediately noticed Ichigo hard at work at his desk. He had piles of papers spread out before him and was busy scribbling away at them. He didn't even look up when he heard her enter.

"Hey," she greeted, her voice quiet and tentative. She had no idea what to expect from him.

He quickly looked up at her with an unreadable gaze before turning back to his papers and returning the greeting. "Hey."

Rukia walked the long walk across his massive office to where he sat at his desk. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"So Nanao said," he responded curtly.

Rukia wanted to tell him everything, but knew that whatever listening device Aizen had decided to use on her would catch whatever she told him. She needed to use her words carefully. "Are you even going to look at me?" she asked, her voice betraying some of her annoyance at his nonchalant and flippant attitude. Normally whenever she was in the same room as him, she was the center of his attention.

He stopped what he was doing and gave her a hard look. "Despite what you may think, I actually do have to work. I have to get the last of these papers signed and ready to go before my meeting," he said before his gaze returned to his desk.

Rukia sighed. So far this was going pretty horribly. It would make what she had to do that much harder. "Maybe now isn't the right time," she said, more to herself as she made to leave.

Ichigo's voice stopped her in her tracks. "No, you sit down and tell me whatever the hell is so important."

Rukia turned back around and stared wide-eyed at Ichigo's harsh expression. Was he really that mad at her? She figured he would be a little upset that she shut him out without telling him anything, but surely he had to know by now that it wasn't really her fault.

Ichigo motioned toward one of the two chairs facing his desk. Rukia looked down at it and then back up at Ichigo. "I'd rather stand," she told him simply.

Ichigo rolled his eyes and replied, "Fine, whatever. What is it?"

Rukia took another deep breath to prepare herself and looked Ichigo in the eye, trying her best to ignore his irritated expression.

"I just wanted to tell you that…I'm sorry," she said quietly.

Ichigo didn't give any indication that her apology surprised him. He looked almost like he was expecting it. "For?" he asked.

"For ignoring you these past few weeks. I shouldn't have done that."

Ichigo looked contemplative for a minute before he leaned back casually in his desk chair. "And you're just now realizing this?" he asked.

Rukia sighed. "I just needed space for a little bit. You know, just some time to think. But, I shouldn't have completely shut you out. I should've told you."

"Told me what?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"That I was…scared…about where our relationship was going," Rukia lied. Though she was curious about where the two of them stood and if she should keep letting them progress in their relationship, she had never been scared. She knew this was something she shouldn't be afraid of anymore. Still, she had to give a proper excuse and this was the best one she could think of.

"I wasn't aware it was going anywhere," Ichigo spoke, his voice taking on a strangely…dangerous tone. She wondered for a brief minute if he could tell what she was doing.

"Look, I had a great time on our last date, but I guess I just kind of freaked out once it all sunk in. Ignoring you was the only way I could think to cope with it."

"And where are you now?"

Rukia paused and took a deep breath. "I'm here asking for forgiveness…and a second chance."

"To do what," Ichigo asked, displaying none of the emotions Rukia figured he would be having.

"To keep going," she told him simply.

Ichigo didn't even waver before he said, "And what's to say you won't freak out at the next step and ignore me again. I don't like not talking to you."

"Well, maybe, if we go slow enough, it won't be as big of a deal," Rukia offered.

Ichigo took a few minutes to process all of the things she had been telling him. Eventually, he spoke. "So, you really want to keep going with whatever this thing is that we have?"

Rukia looked him dead in the eye and told him with all the honesty she could muster, "Yes, I do."

And this time she was telling the truth.

Ichigo, finally giving Rukia some kind of readable emotion, smiled at her. He stood up from his chair and walked around his desk so that he was leaning on the other side of it, facing Rukia. "I see. So, what exactly did you have in mind for the next step?" he asked, crossing his arms.

Rukia wanted to feel relieved that he seemed to be believing her apology, but she felt nothing but regret and despair. She hated having to play him like this. She wanted to spend time with him and talk to him normally, not with some kind of hidden agenda taking over everything she had to say.

She plastered the best fake smile she could muster on her face and answered him. "Well, I was thinking that maybe we could go out together casually. Like a small lunch date or coffee even. Something like that."

Ichigo nodded his head in affirmation. "Yeah, I like that idea."

"Good. So we can plan something for this week then?"

"Sounds perfect."

"Great. I'll let you go because I know you have to be somewhere, but I'll text you and we can make our plans," Rukia said as she gathered herself and began to leave.

Ichigo stopped her.

"One last thing," he said, causing her to turn back around and face him with a questioning glance.

"Yes?" she asked curiously.

"I have a favor I need to ask of you."

"Oh, okay," Rukia replied, not exactly expecting that from him. "What is it?"

He didn't answer her. Instead, he raised his hand and motioned with his pointer finger for her to come closer to him. They were already standing fairly close to each other, but Rukia still walked forward so that they were well within each other's personal spaces. She was confused as to why he needed to ask something of her in such close proximity. Something about this was beginning to unnerve her.

Ichigo smiled a genuine smile at her and gently reached down to grab one of her hands from where it was resting beside her. He held it tenderly and looked into her eyes. Rukia's heart began to beat as she stared at his beautiful amber orbs.

He leaned in closer to her and the panic signals in her brain that she would've normally expected to be going off in this situation were silent. She found, that for the first time since she had known Ichigo Kurosaki, she wanted nothing more in that moment than for him to kiss her.

And she really expected him to do it. But, he surprised her yet again by moving past her lips toward the side of her face. She was extremely confused until he whispered a simple statement into her ear.

"Tell Aizen that he can go fuck himself."

Rukia's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.

Ichigo leaned back to look into her eyes and, with the most determined face she had ever seen on him, said, "I'm not going to let him use you against me." He took his hand from where it was resting in his pocket and joined it with the other that was holding Rukia's. Then he let her go, stepped back, and walked calmly over to his desk chair, as though nothing happened.

Rukia stood still, shocked at what he had just told her. She knew he had to have been suspicious of her from the start, but she still figured she had done a good enough job of redirecting him. Turns out I'm not the only one with a hidden agenda.

Before Rukia could even think about a response, she turned and dashed away from his office, needing time to think about what he had said and done. She walked quickly past Nanao's desk and waited impatiently for the elevator to take her far, far away from Ichigo Kurosaki. Eventually, the elevator arrived and she rode it back to her floor. However, instead of running back to her desk, she found the nearest restroom and locked herself in a stall.

She let her breathing calm down a bit and her brain stop spinning before she raised her clenched fist and slowly opened it. There, lying in her hand, was a tiny, black piece of plastic. Rukia recognized it immediately as a listening device, as it looked just like the one hidden in her diamond necklace.

Her heart raced at what it meant. Uryuu and Ichigo knew what she was doing. They knew she was feeding info to Aizen. They knew she was lying to them, but they still didn't care. They were going to keep fighting. What was even more important was that they still trusted and relied on her. She knew exactly what Ichigo wanted her to do with the listening device. She knew as soon as he had discreetly placed it in her palm.

He wanted her to help them catch Aizen and that was exactly what she was going to do.

Game on.