"Why hello, children," Karin greeted Ichigo and Rukia before she squatted on the edge of the pond. "May I interrupt your fun for a minute?"

The couple paused on wrestling each other in the water to peek at whoever had dared to interrupt their fight.

Seeing it was the dark-haired Kurosaki twin, Rukia waved her hand with much enthusiasm while she held Ichigo in a headlock with her other arm; the man was trying, but failing, to wiggle his way out of her grasp. Indeed, Kuchiki was one hell of a shinigami warrior despite her petite frame.

"Hello, Karin-chan!" Rukia said, still waving energetically. "I thought you were in the living world with Hitsugaya-taichou!"

"We just came back. Anyway, I want to show you something. Why don't you stop playing for a moment and come here? Both of you, I mean."

Puzzled, Rukia and Ichigo traded inquisitive glances. Ichigo shrugged to let the woman know that he, too, had no idea what his sister was up to.

Without further questions, Rukia approached Karin, but not without pushing Ichigo's head down the water first.

"What the hell, midget!" Ichigo sputtered.

Rukia ignored the man as she climbed out of the pond, water dripping from all over her body and clothes. She sat down next to Karin.

Soon, Ichigo, who was equally damp, joined them.

"Yo, Karin. What's up?" Ichigo asked, ruffling his hair in the hope it would dry faster.

Without saying a word, Karin grinned and opened her palm to reveal the Truth candies.

Ichigo bent down while Rukia leaned close to examine the small, round things on the younger woman's hand.

Confirming they were candies, Ichigo arched a brow. "Don't tell me you called us just to show these things."

"Okay, I won't tell you that, Ichi-nii." Karin rolled her eyes. "But I'll let you know I got these from Urahara-san."

"Soul candies?" Rukia asked. "Though they look different."

Karin opened her mouth, but before she could answer the older woman, Ichigo cut in, "You shouldn't be playing with that man's stuff, Karin."

With a frown, the young Kurosaki woman rose to her feet. "I know, I know," she said, then shoved her hand with the candies toward Ichigo. "Take one of these, Ichi-nii."

"What?" Ichigo asked in a dubious tone. Despite his distrust, he took one candy. His brows knitted as he scrutinized it. "And then? What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Swallow it, Ichi-nii."

"What? No way! Why would I even want to—"

"Rukia-chan, help me! Hold him!"

"—do that?"

Rukia gazed back and forth between the Kurosaki siblings, bewildered by their exchange of cries. She paused and tried weighing her options. What to do, what to do? Karin was her good friend, but Ichigo was...

Well, she loved making Ichigo suffer. The thought made her grin.

"Alright." Rather eager, she tackled the man to the ground and pushed Ichigo's head down, one of his cheeks pressing against the sandy soil. She put her weight over him. After twisting his arms and pinning his wrist behind his waist, Rukia lifted her face to check for the younger woman's reaction. "What are you planning, Karin-chan?"

"Oi, midget, let me go!" Ichigo cried, struggling to escape.

Karin took advantage of the situation and put a Truth candy in her brother's mouth while he kept yelling at Rukia.

Because he had not noticed his little sister's action, Ichigo swallowed the Truth candy by accident. He pressed his lips together and blinked, waiting for something strange to happen to him.

One second. Two. Three. Four. Five.

Ichigo scowled. Nothing was happening. He was fine. His body was fine.

Karin grinned and held her thumb up. "Thank you, Rukia-chan. You can let go of him now."

Though she could not yet catch on to what the younger woman was doing, Rukia did what she had been told and got off of Ichigo. She stood, and Ichigo followed suit, feeling his body all over.

"I am... fine."

"Yes, you are, Ichi-nii," Karin said, the wide smile remaining on her expression. "But I want to ask you something."

The deep creases returned to Ichigo's forehead. "Whatever, Karin."

Rukia turned to the dark-haired Kurosaki twin with curiosity.

"So Ichi-nii." Karin glanced at the older woman, then at her brother. "These past few months, I've noticed that you've been hanging out with Rukia-chan an awful lot. Yuzu and I have been suspecting you're doing it because you're in love with her. We're not that sure, though."

Lies. The Kurosaki twins were one hundred percent certain their brother was head over heels for the Kuchiki woman.

"What can you say about it, Ichi-nii? You love Rukia-chan, don't you?"

Slacked-jawed, Rukia eyed the man.

Ichigo crossed his arms. At first, it seemed like he would say her sister was paranoid and didn't know what she was saying. But then, he said, "And what makes you think I don't love her? Of course, I do. I've always wanted her to become my girlfriend. Just that, I always lose my nerve before I can even ask her."

That was enough for Karin to hear. She didn't need to witness everything. Without waiting for Rukia's reaction, Karin swiveled on her heels and left the scene.

She'd done her part, and it was up to Ichigo and Rukia to do the rest.

• • •

"So I'll take it my plan didn't go that well, huh?" Karin asked her brother, who'd been waiting for her at the main entrance of the Tenth Division barracks.

Ichigo leaned away from the sliding door. "She punched me." He sighed, scratching his nape. "Rukia punched me after you left."

Guilt came over Karin. To be fair, she'd never thought Rukia was going to react that way. Given the Kuchiki woman was sort of crude, what she'd done, after the guy she liked had confessed to her, was still beyond Karin's expectations.

"I'm err... Sorry," she said, unsure what else to say. "I didn't—"

"And then she told me to do it again."

Karin blinked. "Eh?"

"She told me that if I was going to confess my feelings, I should have been more direct with her. She said I should do it with all my heart, and not as if the words were coming out of my nose. And then, she made me do it multiple times and didn't stop until she was satisfied! Can you believe her, Karin?! How dare she do that to me?!"

At a loss for words, Karin gaped at her brother while she tried to grasp everything he'd said.

"Oi, are you even listening to me?" Ichigo asked, calmer than earlier.

Karin found her voice after the shock wore off. "So... in the end..." she said, tentative, willing her older brother to elaborate.

"Yeah, your plan worked in the end. We're now together." The grouchy expression found its way back to Ichigo's features.

Her mouth formed into a smile for a second, but it slid off the moment she noticed her brother wasn't as pleased as she'd anticipated him to be. Karin crossed her arms, giving him a pointed look. "You don't seem like you're happy about it, though."

"I'm happy about it. But I'm here to tell you to stop whatever you're doing, Karin."

The younger sibling scoffed. "Aren't you supposed to thank me, Ichi-nii? I helped you with Rukia-chan, didn't I?"

"Do you know that Hisagi is currently hiding from Rangiku-san?" Ichigo asked, ignoring his sister's question. "He can't face her right now because of what you made him say yesterday. You remember it, don't you, Karin?"

A sheepish grin rested on her lips as she recalled the incident.

How could she forget that? A very straightforward confession from the Ninth Division Lieutenant; his fantasies about the Tenth's strawberry-blonde officer and his desire to get it on with her. Well, yeah, that was sort of—totally—embarrassing. Karin had never thought that Hisagi had it in him.

"That was indeed an unfortunate incident, Ichi-nii," Karin said with a shrug. "Jeez, but why are you so ungrateful? I only wanna help those people who don't have the courage to say the things they want to say. Is that wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong with your intention, Karin. But people don't actually like it when they're forced to say the things they're not ready to say yet. And how are you sure they want to reveal it in the first place?"

The young woman huffed, unable to think of any counterargument for that.

"Will you like it if someone also forces you to reveal the fact that you're in love with Toushirou?"

"W-w-what?!" Karin shouted, the color of her face making a ripe tomato pale in comparison. "I'm... I'm n-not in love with him!"

"Not that I'm in favor of the idea, though no one can deny that you two make an amazing combination. But that's beside the point. What I'm trying to say is... Karin, you should stop this meddling before everything would come back and bite you," Ichigo said before walking past the young woman.

Karin turned around and watched her brother saunter away, her mouth pulling down to a glower. "Just what's wrong with people recently, being so touchy and all?"

She raised her shoulders. Oh well, she might as well go to Toushirou since she'd been busy 'having fun' yesterday and hadn't been able to help him with the work.

• • •

"You!"

Karin jumped out of her skin as a scream met her the instant she entered the administrative office.

The strawberry-blonde woman pointed an accusing finger at her

"What about me?! What did I do now?!" Karin asked in a hasty voice.

"You scared my drinking buddy away! I won't get any drink today, so what's gonna happen to me now?!"

Karin knew Rangiku wasn't mad or disappointed, to say the least. Only, their division's lieutenant could be overdramatic sometimes.

"I didn't mean to do that, Rangiku-san!"

"Will you tone down your voices, both of you?!"

The two women turned to the source of the third voice and saw a very annoyed Toushirou on his chair, glaring at them.

"I'm working, in case you didn't notice. If you want to stay here, but don't have any plan to help, I'd appreciate if you'd at least keep your mouths shut."

Karin regarded him for a moment before beaming. "Relax, Toushi, you'll age fast with the way you're acting," she said, the comment causing the young captain to direct his irritation solely at her.

Rangiku giggled. "Jeez, it's always entertaining to watch you two flirt with each other."

"We're not flirting!" Toushirou and Karin shouted at the same time.

The strawberry-blonde woman held her hands up in a mock surrender. "Whatever, sweethearts," she said, making her way to the door.

"Leaving already?" Karin asked.

With a wide grin, Rangiku peered over her shoulder. "You don't want me staying here, in case you decide to jump each other." She winked and stepped out of the office, laughing at her own joke.

"Stupid," the young captain grumbled.

Karin went over to the couch and sat down, eyes fixed on her best friend, who had resumed doing the paperwork. Remembering her Ichi-nii's words about her being in love with this man, she blushed and shook her head as if that would rid her of the thought.

"And why in the world are you doing a head-bang, woman? Have you totally lost your mind now?"

It was Karin's turn to throw a dirty stare at her best friend, but it was a useless sentiment since Toushirou could not see the flare in her eyes because his attention was on the paperwork.

She would never understand how he could be so attentive to everything around him, even if he appeared focused on doing something.

"Shut up, geezer." She leaned back on the couch. "So what's up?"

"I don't know. Why don't you tell me?"

Karin snorted. Typical Toushirou.

She closed her eyes and tilted her head upward. She stayed like that until she heard a shuffling of the chair and soft footfalls. Opening her eyes, she saw Toushirou disappearing to the door that connected the office and a small kitchen.

Karin stared at the said door, waiting for Toushirou to come back. When he did, he already had two cups of tea, one on each hand.

The young captain surprised his subordinate when he offered her one.

"Uh, thanks?" Despite her uncertainty, Karin accepted the drink.

That was odd. She had been convinced Toushirou knew about what she'd done regarding the Truth candies, and she had expected him to scold her for that. Instead, he was acting nice today—not that he was never nice, but this behavior was still out of the ordinary.

Karin decided to brush it off, telling herself it was normal for Toushirou to be unpredictable sometimes. Besides, he wasn't chewing her head off, so who was she to complain?

She sipped while Toushirou took the seat across from her. As she drew the brim away from her lips, Karin sighed in appreciation. Just what she needed; a nice tea to relax.

"I've heard a funny story that you like a guy. Is he a shinigami officer?" Toushirou then asked out of the blue.

"Uh-huh, and a high-ranking one at that," Karin said, without glancing at him.

It took a few more seconds for her to realize what she'd blurted out. Once everything sank in, she froze. She stared, wide-eyed, at her dim reflection on the tea. In suspense, she looked up at Toushirou, only to see him smirking.

"You..." she said under her breath. "You dissolved a Truth candy in my tea."

"Congratulations, you got it. Though, it wasn't exactly a Truth candy. It was a Truth liquid that Hinamori and your sister got from the Twelfth Division. How they convinced Kurotsuchi-taichou to make it for them is still beyond me, but why would I still bother to know?"

Karin dropped her cup. She wasn't sure what Toushirou was up to, but she knew she needed to get out of the room. If the Truth liquid worked like the Truth candy, all she had to do was to avoid anyone for at least an hour. She had to stay away as soon as possible.

So, run for the exit, she did. Unfortunately, as she tried to slide the door, she realized it wouldn't open. She scanned it up and down, trying to figure out what was wrong, and her jaw dropped when she felt Toushirou's reiatsu on it.

But why hadn't she noticed it earlier? And Rangiku had been able to open it, right? Did it mean it was part of the plan all along?

"Fuck."

Everything had been a careful plot. Toushirou was good alright. Screw that; he was damn great. But it wasn't the perfect time to commend him for that. He must have a serious reason for devising this if he would go to the extent of using a kekkai on the door.

"What the hell, Toushi. Why are you doing this?"

Toushirou stood up. "Payback."

"P-p-payback?! What the fucking hell do you mean?! What did I do to deserve this payback from you?!"

Crossing his arms, Toushirou said, "Hinamori and your sister were here earlier. Aren't you even wondering why they asked the twelfth division captain to create the Truth liquid for them?"

"No, not really."

"They used it on me, Karin." Toushirou showed her a tight smile.

The young woman frowned. "I don't get it. If they were the ones who did that to you, then why are you taking your revenge on me? It's not fair!"

"Oh, but it's fair because when I asked them why they did it, they told me they believed I was conspiring with you, and they were getting even for what you did to the read-head from the shop and the guy who was courting Hinamori. They got their revenge on me, Karin, so it's only fair that I have my revenge on you. After all, you're the one who started the whole thing. So why don't you relax for a moment and have a taste of your own medicine?"

Karin gulped. She really didn't have a say in that. "L-look, Toushirou, c-can we just forget about it? I promise I'm going to stop!"

The smirk never leaving his expression, Toushirou said, "Too bad, Karin. I am interested in learning more about the guy you like."

Her eyes widened. Oh no, not that one.

"So he's a high-ranking shinigami, huh? What's the first kanji of his given name?"

The woman bit her bottom lip, trying to keep herself from uttering a single syllable, but her attempt ended up in vain as her lips trembled and a faint, "Tou," escaped her mouth.

A thoughtful hum reverberated from Toushirou's throat. "Interesting. And what's the second kanji of his given name?"

This time, Karin covered her mouth with her hand. She was relieved when her answer came out as a muffled sound, but the feeling didn't last long when she saw Toushirou drawing near to her.

Karin stepped back, and for a very quick second, took her palm off of her lips to shout, "This is not funny, Toushirou!" She covered them again before the division captain could ask her another question.

"Oh, yeah?" Toushirou blinked and tilted his head to the side, resembling a curious child. Had it not been for their current situation, Karin would have found him cute with such a gesture. But for now, she only saw him as an evil monster.

"That's not what I remember you said yesterday, Karin."

She narrowed her eyes, hand still covering her mouth, while he continued advancing toward her.

Karin took another step back and then groaned when her behind hit the wall. It looked like she had run out of luck.

Stopping a foot away from her, Toushirou gave Karin a mischievous smile. He tugged on her wrist, his action gentle, and took her hand away from her mouth.

Karin struggled, but she was helpless against the man's strength. To make things worse for her, Toushirou held her other wrist, pinning both of her arms on either side of her head.

"Now, shall we carry on from where we left?"

She glared. "I'm going to kill you after this, Toushirou."

Undaunted by the threat, Toushirou said, "So the first kanji of his given name is 'Tou.' What's the second kanji?"

"Shi." Karin gritted her teeth. "I'm gonna burn you with Honoozuki until no one can recognize you, have your head into a stick and roast it!"

If Toushirou was that interested in knowing who the guy was, why wouldn't he just ask his whole name and get over it once and for all? But the way the tenth division captain was acting, it was obvious he already knew. Except he wanted to hear it straight from Karin.

And what was the punch? He would get the answer, bit by bit, following the slow and painful method. Hitsugaya Toushirou indeed was an evil. Gorgeous, yes, but still an evil.

He chuckled, amused by Karin's threats.

The hell. It was supposed to intimidate not to entertain him!

"And what's the color of his eyes?" Obviously, Toushirou had no plan of ending the game soon as he leaned close to Karin's face, making her feel more uncomfortable.

Karin stared him in the eye, warmth crawling on her cheeks. "They're naturally turquoise." The words didn't feel like they were forced anymore. It was as if she was answering according to her conscious choice. "But they often change from one shade of green to another, depending on his emotions."

The playful expression slid off of Toushirou's face while his eyes darkened. "What do you feel right now?"

Something akin to excitement replaced Karin's annoyance. Her stomach fluttered. "Tempted."

"To what?"

"To kiss you."

Just as she finished the statement, Toushirou's lips crashed down on hers. He let go of her hands, moving an arm down to wrap around her waist while his other hand messed with her dark locks.

Headiness washed over Karin as Toushirou's lips moved against hers to deepen the kiss. It occurred to her she wasn't reacting yet and was letting the man do all the work. Not the type to be dominated, she hooked her arms around his neck and started responding to the kiss, with eagerness as his.

She felt him nibbling her bottom lip, and then he was showering her face with feather kisses.

Contented, Karin sighed.

Toushirou pecked her mouth one last time before pulling away with a smile.

"I hate you," Karin said, catching her breath.

"Sure, you do," Toushirou murmured and kissed the woman's nose. "You should fix the mess you'd caused to other people, Karin. Apologize to them, I mean."

"Are you also gonna apologize to me then?"

"Nuh-uh," he said. When he noticed Karin's scowl, he snickered. "How about a dinner tonight?"

"Fair enough."

"That's settled then. Now, if you don't mind, we still have work to do."

"You can go back to work if you want." Karin stuck her tongue out.

Toushirou's eyes twinkled. "But how can I work with all your limbs snaking around me?"

Confused, Karin blinked. Sure, her arms were around his neck, but her legs hadn't moved an inch since the kiss. Or had they?

She lowered her gaze, a furious blush taking over her cheeks when she realized her legs had indeed circled Toushirou's hips. Since when had they been in that position?

Hearing the soft laughter, Karin jumped off of Toushirou and huffed. "I hate you."

The young captain shrugged and turned to go back to his table. He had taken only two steps when he stopped and asked, "So how was the kiss, Karin?"

"How am I supposed to know? All I can think is that I wanna do it again."

Toushirou walked away, chuckling, as Karin groaned.

Stupid Truth stuff.