Unspoken Rule

"Hurry up, Rukia!" Ichigo called out. "What's taking so long?"

I rolled my eyes as I finished applying the black colored ink of the pencil to my eyes. Yuzu had called it 'eyeliner'.

"So is this 'Halloween'?" I asked him through the closed bathroom door.

"It really great, Kuchiki-san!" Orihime exclaimed. "Free candy, here we come!"

Ishida, Chad, and Orihime were gathered out in the hall with Ichigo. We were all set to go with Karin and Yuzu to go get free candy. 'Trick or treating' Ichigo had called it.

"Ichigo, what is 'Halloween'?" I asked him, tuning out the sound of Isshin talking to Yuzu and Karin about the function of pepper spray.

He tilted the book he was reading slightly.

We were in his room; I was sitting on his desk chair, Ichigo sitting on the bed with his head against the window. The sunlight touched his hair, making the orange color almost vivid, brightening the whole room.

His expression was a mixed with irritation and amusement as he pondered my question.

"Don't laugh." I protested, anger mildly kicking in.

He sighed, the corners of his mouth twitching up slightly. "Halloween is a holiday for little kids where people dress up in costumes and walk around in the dark collecting free candy." He brought his book back up to his face.

I slid my hand between the two pages Ichigo was reading and shoved it down.

"What now?" he asked, his attitude starting to turn dark.

"What are costumes?" I asked.

His amber eyes became thoughtful. "Costumes are outfits that people wear when they want to be other people."

"Hmmm," I mused, cupping my chin between my thumb and index finger.

"Basically people put on other people's clothing?" I asked.

Ichigo's body tensed a bit, looking a little flustered.

"Err, not exactly. You wear an outfit that makes you look like another person. It doesn't have to be someone else's clothing."

I nodded once, taking in all the information.

I stood up out of my chair and walked over to a drawer Ichigo had his clothing in. Pulling the handle, I reached in and took out one of Ichigo's shirts.

"What are you doing?" he asked loudly.

I slipped on his purple 'Nice Vibe' shirt, the fabric touching a millimeter below my short jean shorts. It was big enough on me to completely cover my own clothing.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" I asked, turning in a circle. I formed a scowl on my face and pressed my eyebrows together. In my best voice, I pointed a thumb at myself and said "Kurosaki Ichigo, substitute Shinigami, and orange haired high school student. My favorite pass times are cleansing Hollow's, scaring little kids with my face, and scowling at the sky."

Ichigo's orange eyebrow twitched, "That's it! Take it off!"

I jumped up as he lunged at me, demanding his shirt back.

"Why?" I asked, jumping up on the desk chair. "This is my costume!"

He made a sharp turn in my direction once he realized I had slipped past him. I pressed my legs against the chair and jumped – aiming for his bed. Ichigo grabbed my left ankle and tried to turn me to face him as I flew to the blue and white covers, pulling him with me.

Air was knocked out of me as we both collided onto the bed. Ichigo had managed to land on top of me, his weight pressing down on me.

"Baka mono! You're crushing m-"

"Get it off now!" Ichigo demanded, pulling on the right sleeve.

"Ichigo," I tried to take in a breath, my lungs compressed.

He started pulling on the hem of the shirt. "Shirt. Off. Now." he grumbled.

"Can't breathe!" I yelled at him, pushing my hands against him.

"RUKIA, GET IT OFF NOW!"

Ichigo's words echoed throughout the room.

His eyes widened at the sudden silence from downstairs.

The door suddenly burst open with a kick and Isshin came jumping in.

"MASAKI! OUR IDIOT SON IS DEFILING OUR LOVELY THIRD DAUGHTER!" Isshin screamed to the celling, his body aiming at Ichigo with a kick.

Cold air welcomed my lungs as Ichigo threw Isshin out the door with a punch. "GET LOST!"

Recovering quickly, Isshin began to prance around the hall. "MASAKI, WE'LL HAVE GRANDBABIES SOON!"

Ichigo threw him a kick to the face, "Can it, Old Man!" and shut the door.

Sitting up, I pressed my lips together, trying to suppress the chuckle that threatened to pass through my lips.

Ichigo glared as he walked over to me, stopping once his legs touched the edge of the bed. A brief chuckle escaped and I cupped my hands over my lips as my body began to shake with laughter. Sometimes, messing with him was just too easy.

"Happy now?" he asked, one hand motioning to the now closed door.

I crossed my arms, my body calm and serious. "It's not my fault. I have no control over what you say."

"Rukia!"

This time, I let him hear my laugh.

"Well, I can be your boss if you want." I commented, knowing it would bother him.

"You already act like it." He said softly.

"So you finally admit it." I confirmed. "I am your boss."

His eye twitched.

"And besides," I sat up on my knees, still craning my neck up to look him in the eyes.

The space between the two of us became minimal, heated. He pulled closer, our bodies touching. I rested my hands on his chest.

"Would it be that horrible to have me as a boss?"

He gave a quick smile, amber eyes lit. "You obviously never had to work for you before."

"Baka mono." I muttered, offended.

Ichigo's left hand cupped my chin, the other holding my shoulder. "It's not all that bad."

He leaned in and gave me a kiss. His lips were forceful and sweet, kind and rough; like his personality. The words that came from them could be brash and demanding; caring and thoughtful. I tangled one of my hands into his orange hair, pulling him closer to me. His other arm wrapped around my waist, locking me in.

Neither of us ever pulled away from a kiss.

It was an unspoken rule between the two of us.

Both of us would just continue until the other gave up. The first time we kissed it was purely a battle for dominance - and no one won. The battle only stopped when consumption of lips almost suffocated us both.

It was a mutual decision. If it wasn't for air, Ichigo and I would probably never stop.

That was the other unspoken rule: We only ceased the kiss when air became necessary.

As we pulled away, our breathing was a little strong, lungs desperate to capture more.

"We should probably - "

"Stop," I concluded. Nodding, I added, "Yeah. We should."

He smiled again sat next to me on the bed, grabbing his glass of water off the desk and took a drink.

"Unless you want to give Isshin grandbabies."

Pouring onto his clothes and part of his bed, water sprayed out of Ichigo's mouth like a fountain, "Rukia!"

"So what made you decide on your costume, Ichigo?" Inoue asked, pulling me out of my memories.

"Just came to me." He replied.

"But you didn't tell Kuchiki-san, right?" she asked. "Remember, we agreed that we wouldn't tell each other what our costumes were until we went trick or treating."

"I didn't tell her."

True. It was the hardest thing for him to do, since I was always trying to find ways to make him tell me. He never did and I had to go off and find my own since he couldn't help me.

"So Sado – kun is Frankenstein, Ishida – san is a wizard, I'm a witch, Karin – chan is a ninja, Yuzu – chan is a butterfly, and Kurosaki – kun is a werewolf." Inoue said.

Wait.

Baka mono is a werewolf?

I looked down at my own outfit, the red cape brushing the top of my thighs. Hmm… I guess we were on the same page.

"What's your costume, Kuchiki - san?" Orihime's voice chimed through the door.

I put down the black pencil and put my hand on the door knob.

"This is my costume." I proclaimed and opened the door.

"Final - " Ichigo's voice cut off as I saw him take in my costume.

"You look nice, Kuchiki – san." Ishida said to me, Chad nodding in agreement.

"Arigato," I said.

"You look cute, Rukia!" Yuzu exclaimed, Karin trudging behind her.

"Ichi – nii, you're drooling on the floor." Karin informed him, smirking.

He stood up straight as he got out of his haze.

"I thought you hadn't told her your costume." Ishida said.

"I didn't." Ichigo retorted.

"He didn't." I agreed.

I had found it in the costume store with the words 'Little Red Riding Hood' written at the bottom of the bag. The cashier told me that it was a hot seller and would look right on me. He then told me to have a good time and gave me a suspicious wink that worried me out. When I mentioned the incident to Ichigo, he was not too happy about that one when I told him.

"What!?" Ichigo asked loudly.

"It was quite vulgar." I added, squinting a little at the memory.

"What did he tell you exactly?" his question was asked in a tight voice.

"I already told you he told me the costume was really popular." I repeated. His anger gave him a shorter attention span than usual. "He also mentioned it was the first time someone had purchased the costume without approval of their boyfriend."

Every muscle in Ichigo's body became tense, looking like a statue exerting pressure onto itself.

"Ichigo, why would someone buy a costume with the approval of their boyfriend?"

His face turned slightly red. "Just show me the costume you got!" He broke out of his frozen stature.

I folded my arms across my chest. "You're just going to have to wait until Halloween like everyone else!"

"Rukia, tell me what you bought."

"Only if you tell me what you decided to go as." I hissed.

"Where is it?" he asked, ignoring my comment as he began shuffling through the drawers. "You hid it somewhere. Rukia, tell me where you hid it."

I rose from my closet and walked out the door, "Later, Orange."

"I'm not kidding. Rukia! WHERE'D YOU HIDE IT, RUKIA!"

Luckily I had planned ahead and hid costume in the last place he'd look – his father's room, who also had the same odd look on his face when I requested if I could hide it there.

"Isshin - sama," I said, sugar coating my voice, "I was wondering if I can make a request."

"Of course you can, my lovely third daughter!" Isshin's face was plastered with happiness.

"I wanted your permission to hide something in your room, if you'd be ever so kind. I don't want Ichigo to find it." The more sweetness, the better the chance of a favorable response.

"Of course, Rukia - chan." he agreed. "Now tell me, what are we hiding from my idiot son?"

I pulled out the costume from behind my back. "I wanted to hide my costume in your room. Ichigo's been trying to figure out what it is but I want to keep it a secret since he can't see it until Halloween night."

Isshin raised an eyebrow at me and rubbed his chin, the look on his face mirroring the cashiers' as he eyed the costume picture. "Not until Halloween night huh? Very well, Rukia - chan. I shall grant your request."

I gave him a bow. "Arigato, Isshin - sama."

"No thanks are needed, Rukia - chan," Isshin told me smugly. "The costume is thanks enough."

Mildly confused, I gave him a smile and bowed again. "If you'll excuse me."

I was barely out of the door thresh hold when I hear him say, "After all, the costume comes with a grandbaby guarantee."

"Shall we go?" I asked, already making my way to the stairs.

Ichigo shook his head forcefully. "You're not going anywhere in that costume."

I paused and pouted, "Why not, Kurosaki - kun?"

Ambers ignited red. He disliked it when I referred to him by his last name before when we were just friends, he absolutely down right hated it when I used it now that we were together.

"Because!" he exclaimed, face slightly red. "You can't go out looking like that!"

"Looking like what?" I innocently asked, looking down at my costume.

"Like that!" he yelled, motioning to my costume.

The costume was black and red plaid, black the dominant color and the stripes red except for the red cape. I had a red garter belt on my upper left thigh. The hem of the costume barely managed to brush the top of my thighs.

"There's nothing wrong with her outfit, Kurosaki." Ishida - san told him.

"Yeah, Ichi - nii," Yuzu agreed emphatically. "Rukia looks cute."

"That's not the problem, Yuzu." Karin cleared.

"It isn't?" she asked, turning to her twin.

"Of course not." Karin shook her head. "Ichi - nii doesn't want other men looking at his woman."

Ichigo's face turned full on red. Renji's hair wished it could be that shade.

"Let's go." Chad's deep voice boomed, breaking the awkward pause.

"Candy here we come!" Yuzu and Orihime yelled, marching down the stairs. Karin, Chad, and Ishida followed, leaving Ichigo and I at the back.

He looked at me with soft eyes. I felt them run over my body then flash back to my face.

"You look nice, Rukia. You really do."

I smiled at him. "I appreciate it."

Blushing, he looked away. "Don't mention it."

"Chappy!" I jumped up in the air when I saw a small Chappy ring on display. We were on our way home from school when I saw it.

Ichigo rolled his eyes. "You're still obsessing over that rabbit?"

I shot him a glare. "Chappy is the best rabbit ever."

"Whatever." he started walking. "Let's go."

I glared at him all the way home. Isshin saw it and started yelling at Ichigo for displeasing his precious third daughter. Ichigo only made one comment: breaking Isshin's ribs and he promptly left the house. He was gone for four hours. Four long agonizing hours until he came back. It wasn't until after I had finished getting ready for bed when I discovered where he had gone.

I was adjusting the tie strings on my pajama pants when I saw a silver box placed right on top of my white pillow.

I grabbed it and flipped the top open.

"CHAPPY!"

Lying on white satin fabric was the silver Chappy ring I had seen when we were walking home from school.

I slid it on to my third finger on my right hand. Chappy's head was made of silver, the eyes were amethyst. It fit like a glove.

The door opened and Ichigo slid in, a towel wrapped around his neck with some water running down his face from his hair. "You're still up?"

I flashed my eyes at him, a small smile on my face.

His eyes went to my hand noticing the ring.

I walked over to him and gave him a bigger smile, taking his hand in mine.

"I appreciate it."

Thank you.

"Don't mention it."

You're welcome.

Unspoken rule; never having to say thank you.

Isshin was downstairs handing Yuzu and Karin their bags, Inoue, Chad, and Ishida gripping their own.

"Here's one for my idiot son," Isshin handed Ichigo a small and lightly torn bag with a hole. "And this is for you, Little Red." he handed me a basket.

"How come I get the ripped one?" Ichigo protested.

"And you can't forget these!" Isshin ignored his question and held his arm up with a plastic bag hanging from his fingers. "Now open your bags."

He grabbed something gray and threw it first in Chad and Ishida's bags.

"Kurosaki - san, what is this?" Orihime asked as Isshin gave her one in her palm.

"Pepper spray!" Isshin exclaimed. "I can't trust my idiot son to protect four sweet girls. Chad and Ishida maybe; but no, not Ichigo. He can barely take care of himself, so you four angels need protection from all the ill thought men who would want to take advantage of you! You need to be protected at all times! I wouldn't have to worry about this if it weren't for Ichigo! IDIOT SON, WHY ARE YOU SO INCOMPITENT? WHY CAN'T YOU TAKE CARE OF YOUR SISTERS? WHERE HAVE I FAILED AS A PARENT, MASAKI?!"

"IN BEING AN IDIOT, THAT'S WHERE!" Ichigo yelled, kicking Isshin right in the back.

"He's still right." Uryu said, adjusting his glasses in his signature style.

"You little..." Ichigo trailed off.

Isshin lay motionless on the floor for a moment then sprung up with another pepper spray can. "Here's one for you, Yuzu and one for you Karin."

Karin eyed hers for a moment before she sprayed it right in Isshin's eyes.

"Yes! Good job, Karin! That's how you do it!"

"Can we go already?" Ichigo growled.

"Quit your whining." I whispered. "Just enjoy the moment. There are no hollows to cleanse and it's a nice night outside."

"And this one's for you, Third Daughter." Isshin handed me an orange one.

It was the same as the others, same shape and the same size.

Unlike the others, however, mine had a picture on the side with words written underneath.

"Um, Isshin – san, what is this for?" I asked, showing the picture.

"It's a special one made just for you, Rukia – chan." He answered. "I can't let you go anywhere dressed like that so I bought you one specifically made specifically to protect you from ill thinking men."

I gave him a nod as I continued to examine the container. "Then why is Ichigo's face on it?"

"What? Let me see that!" Ichigo snatched the thing out of my hands and kept his gaze on the can. "Why's my picture on here, Old Man?"

Isshin had that weird look on his face again. "Because if I leave poor, sweet, defenseless Rukia alone with you dressed like that you might end up rewriting the fairy tale!"

"EH?" everybody asked, stunned as they tried to figure out how he came to that realization.

"Where did you come up with that kind of reasoning?!" Ichigo asked.

"My boy, you act as if you don't know your fairy tales." Isshin smiled. "Now, what usually happens in Little Red Riding Hood?"

"Umm… Oh! I know! The Prince fights the villain who hurt his Princess and swears revenge against him, goes off to fight him then feels her start to die, and worried that she'll die from her injuries he abandons his fight only to be stalled by people standing in his way, fighting until he sees her alive and well again before his tragic end?" Orihime probed.

With everyone's eyes on Orihime, no one noticed the frozen stature Ichigo and I had taken.

Silence hung between Ichigo and I was we locked eyes, Orihime's 'fairy tale' hitting too close to home.

We didn't have a chance to talk after the defeat of Aizen. He had only told me what had transpired during his battles in Hueco Mundo once he had regained his Shinigami powers months later.

"So you felt it?" I asked him as I sat on his bed beside him.

He nodded. "I felt it."

My eyes were glued on his solemn face. "You felt me die."

"I felt you die." He confirmed, pain touching his eyes.

I touched the outside of his hand, his warmth pleasing to my skin.

He entwined his fingers with mine and gave them a light squeeze.

"Ichigo -"

"You left me three times, Rukia. Once when Renji and Byakuya came for you when you gave me your Shinigami powers; twice after you were hurt defeating the Ninth Espada, and the third time was when I lost my Shinigami powers."

My eyes skimmed over his solemn countenance. The pain and memories were still fresh in his mind.

"The first time I left was to save you." I whispered softly. Any tone louder would have broken us. "The second time was to protect him, to protect his memory." I didn't need to say who, no reason for me to speak his name. Ichigo already knew who I was defending. "The third was out of our hands. Preventing Aizen from finishing what he had started was the top priority. It was bigger than us – more important than us."

His orange mane shook ardently, face becoming tense. "Nothing is more important than us. I should have never of made that choice."

I lifted my hand and touched his face, pulling him out of his thoughts. His eyes were locked on mine. "We're still here, Ichigo."

Finding our way back to each other…

Ichigo's face softened, eyes regaining their light, "Yeah. We're still here."

…Unspoken rule.

"That's not in a kid's fairy tale, Orihime," informed Chad.

"It isn't?" she cocked her head to the side, crestfallen in her voice.

"I think he means the part where Little Red Riding Hood shows up at her grandmother's house and meets the wolf in disguise." Yuzu commented.

"Right! Now tell me what happens, Karin!" Isshin pointed.

"Please leave me out of this." Karin sulked onto the couch.

"I know; the wolf tried to trick her into thinking he was Riding Hood's grandmother. She then asked him why she had such big eyes and he said it was so he could see her better. Then Little Red Riding Hood asked why her grandmother had HUGE teeth then the wolf said it was so he could eat her better!"

Isshin nodded emphatically at every word Yuzu spoke. "Right you are. But the wolf fails and is chopped down by a man with an ax and Red Riding Hood doesn't get eaten at all."

"And your point is?" Ichigo asked.

"Yeah, why did you say that Ichigo was going to rewrite the tale?" Orihime asked.

"The answer is simple, Orihime – chan." Isshin stated.

He puffed out his chest and stuck a finger in the air.

Unconsciously, we all leaned forward anticipating his answer.

"Ichigo will eat Rukia alive in that costume."

Frozen for a second, no one reacted.

Blush rose to my face as I looked down to the ground, trying to hide it.

Yuzu's eyes widened and placed her hands over her ears. Ishida and Orihime remained with a stoic face, blinking with a slight blush. Chad and Karin remained as still as a statue.

The awkward pause in the room was heavy, all eyes flashing to Ichigo.

Watching him, no one seemed to breathe a word until…

"THE HELL DID YOU GET AN IDEA LIKE THAT?!" Ichigo fumed, attacking Isshin, his face completely red.

"It's true!" Isshin exclaimed, punching Ichigo back. "With that costume, I'm bound to get grandbabies in no time!"

I laughed awkwardly, my face still heated. "Maybe we should go now." I suggested, watching Ichigo throw a kick back at his father.

"Good idea." Ishida agreed.

I pulled Ichigo off of his father and began to drag him to the door. "See you later, Isshin – sama."

"Bye Dad!" Yuzu shouted.

Isshin waved watching us cross the street. "Good bye, and don't forget to use the pepper spray. Bring your Daddy back lots of sweets!"

We thought we were out of his range when we heard him yell, "ICHIGO! THE ENTIRE COSTUME COMES OFF IF YOU PULL THE STRING AT THE BOTTOM OF THE CORSET! DON'T FORGET TO COME BACK WITH MY GRANDBABIES!"

Ichigo and I froze momentarily, talking in what he had just shouted. In tandem, we lowered our faces and walked faster, letting the others stray behind us.

"Grandbabies?" I asked him as the others struggled to catch up.

"Ignore him." Ichigo mumbled, pulling his hair.

"Oh."

Faintly we could hear the protests of our other group members demanding us to slow down.

I looked at Ichigo, shyness clouding my face. He met my eyes with the same expression.

"Ichigo?"

Silence.

He seemed a little hesitant to respond, "Yeah?"

I pondered my next question carefully. I glanced down at the costume I was wearing, my left hand on the bottom string.

Feeling a little mischievous, I raised an eyebrow, making sure I had his full attention, "About what Isshin – san said… The entire costume comes off with this one string, right?"

Ichigo's eyes widened in time with the red that was now masking his face.

"RUKIA!"

Laughing at all of his moments that I found adorable (but would never tell him)…

…Unspoken rule.

LC333:

The idea would not leave me alone once I thought of it… It made me stay up until midnight until it worked itself out and convinced me to write it over the course of four days.

It owned me and it knew it.

So, gotta get back to working on my other story (Chasing the Sun), hoped you enjoyed reading this!

R &R? :)

Now has a sort-of-sequel: Unspoken Confessions!