The lightweight

"Aw! It was so nice of all the lieutenants to get me something. I'll have to remember to get them all a thank you card," Rukia mused to herself.

Tucked away under a warm blanket, she sat back against a plush pillow while looking through her cards. A light moan pulled her attention away from the card her captain had given her. Shaking her head, Rukia chuckled to herself as Ichigo hugged her in his sleep, and used her chest like a pillow.

Toying with his wild hair, she said, "I should have known today was going to be crazy when Renji handed me that sake shot in the lieutenant's meeting."


Earlier that day...

With a long, drawn out yawn, Rukia rested her chin in her hand. A large stack of unfinished paperwork sat on her desk, and it felt to her that it was a never ending pile. She huffed at the daunting work, and then reached for the first batch that needed completing. As she tried her best to focus on her work, something, or someone, was there to keep her from concentrating. Letting out a sneeze, the bored Substitute Shinigami startled the lieutenant. Rukia glared over at Ichigo, whose sneeze was obviously fake, and grumbled something inaudible under her breath. If she was stuck with him one more second she was sure she'd snap! Yes, this person was her best friend, and yes, she had missed him greatly over the year and a half they'd been apart, but that didn't matter right now. Rukia had a lot of work to complete, and she didn't want another distraction around. Captain Ukitake had requested Ichigo return to the Soul Society, and while he agreed to it, no one was fully sure why he was there. Ichigo didn't quite care what the need of him being there was. To him, it was just a free vacation, and a nice excuse to carry a sword around. But just as his companion was angered by his disruptions, he was bored to tears from her lack of commentary. How hard would it be for her to take a minute break?

Bouncing a small, vending machine ball off the floor, Ichigo curiously asked, "You have plans besides working?"

"Yes, I actually do," Rukia replied. When his attention moved from the shiny ball to his friend, she continued, "Working more. I want this paperwork completed as soon as possible so I can have a nice weekend."

"You're making your work sound so complicated! How hard can it be?" he said. Hoping up from his seat on the floor, Ichigo wandered up to her desk and swiped a sheet of paper from her. He stared for some time at the words written there, and after a minute or so, crumpled it into a ball and tossed it across the room. "That's all gibberish to me! What is that, Kanji?"

Rukia huffed as she got up to retrieve her crushed paper, and replied, "Yes, that's Kanji. With you being in high school, I'm surprised you don't know it."

"I knew enough to pass the test, and after that who uses it? Now then, you're taking the rest of this day off and we're going out. It's Saturday, and not only that it's your birthday, now come on," he declared. Heading for the door, he turned back toward her, and beckoned her to follow. He'd been watching her work since early morning, and was tired of it. She shouldn't be stuck working on her birthday!

"I can't just leave in the middle of the day! Even if it is my birthday and a Saturday, I still have a lot of paperwork!" she argued.

"If I've said it once I've said it a thousand times; all your opinions are rejected," Ichigo reminded her. "Now am I going to have to carry you out of here, or will you follow willingly?"

She thought he was just joking about carrying her, but that's what she got for thinking. Kicking and thrashing the whole way out the door, Rukia cried, "Put me down!"

Ichigo only let out an evil cackle of a laugh, and continued carrying his Rukia. Yes, his way of getting her away from work was rash, but he couldn't take it anymore. It was a Saturday night, and her birthday. He couldn't stand the idea of seeing her waste such a great January night. After ten minutes, Rukia quit struggling and merely went along for the ride. She had to admit, it wasn't all that bad getting a piggy back ride from Ichigo. She used to ride on his back when her powers had depleted, so it was nice getting to do it again. And while Rukia wasn't thrilled with just walking out, err, being carried out, of her job, it is kind of him to want to do something for her. Even if that something is carrying her out to the middle of nowhere! Her train of thought derailed there when she became a bit more aware of her surroundings. The buildings and roads of the Seireitei were completely out of sight, their outline in the sky not even visible. Nothing but grass and open fields surrounded the pair as Ichigo continued on his trek to who knows where. "Where in the world is he taking me?" Rukia wondered as he set her down. Taking a second to look at the unknown place he'd taken her to, she gasped when a lovely white light shined. Dotted across the open field they stood in were beautiful lunar flowers. Their gorgeous white petals appeared to almost glow in the moon's light.

"This... this is amazing," she muttered out as she stared in awe of them.

"Toushiro had me come out this way to pick up something for him, and I thought you'd like this place. You seem like the type to be easily amused by a shiny flower," he replied.

Gently cupping one of the flowers in her hands, she smiled softly. This place was absolutely beautiful, and despite her living in this area for decades, she never knew it existed. While still in awe of the floral around her, Rukia noticed a few boxes sitting in an empty grass patch. She turned a questioning gaze toward Ichigo, who only shrugged in reply to her. Wandering up the boxes, Rukia read the card on top of one, and was a bit confused.

"Happy 151th birthday?" she asked as she raised an eyebrow. When Ichigo's reply was to just open it, she for once did as he said. Opening the purple gift wrapped box, her confusion escalated.  Sitting inside the box was a matching pair of blue Chappy drink cups.

Before Rukia could question the odd gift, Ichigo handed her the next box and said, "They go together."

She took the rectangle box, and shook her head when the card read, "Happy 152nd birthday." Tearing the red and orange striped gift wrap off, Rukia held up her gift and mumbled, "Cream liquor?"

"I didn't think you could handle something stronger," he replied with a light laugh.

Sticking her tongue out at him, she looked to the final gift. Chuckling at the birthday wishes for her 153rd birthday, she opened the box to find a corkscrew. Now with the final gift in hand, she popped open the liquor bottle. For the next numbers of hours, the pair happily sat with the lunar flowers, talking about their past birthdays and such. With every story told, Rukia continued to find herself confused as to why they kept giving her poor friend a cheesecake over a chocolate one. Humans were such hard things to understand. She'd never know what possessed Ichigo to take her out to a field at night for a drink, but she also didn't want to know why. It was just nice that he did this for her. It wasn't until recent that anyone even cared to do a thing for her. Byakuya would give a gift out of obligation, and while she tried to seem excited, it never felt sincere. Renji did things for her when they were kids, but of course that came to a halt when they grew up. The only one who truly ever remembered her birthday was Kaien. He'd give her a shot of sake and tell her to take the day off. Since his death, she became forgotten again until her promotion to lieutenant. Now everyone magically remember the person who had been there for decades. She had begun to wonder if she'd mastered a kido of invisibility until this. Ichigo had only known her for a couple years, and yet he went out of his way to get her these gifts. Leaning back on his shoulder, she took another sip of her drink. She was amazed at how sweet this drink was. "I'd love to ask how he got this, but something tells me however it was done was illegal," Rukia laughed to herself. While kicked back against her companion, she noticed his drink sitting perfectly untouched.

"Do you not like it?" Rukia asked.

When Ichigo didn't understand her question, she gestured to the full cup. "No, I just, well, err... I-" "Never once tried alcohol before? And yet you called me a lightweight!" she scoffed, cutting him off mid sentence.

"I did not! You're just small so I thought you'd be a lightweight!" he grumbled.

"So you don't deny thinking I'd be a lightweight?" she asked.

"I thought it; I didn't say it," Ichigo pointed out. Drinking down his drink in a single sip, he added, "And for your information, I have had alcohol before!"

Chuckling lightly to herself, Rukia muttered, "Rubbing alcohol on a wound doesn't count in this."

When the night sky began to lighten, both highly regretted that conversation from earlier. Helping her companion to his feet, she tried to keep him from falling. Just as she'd thought, he'd never had liquor a day in his young life, and now was sick as a dog. She'd never seen someone so sick in her life! Letting him lean on her, Rukia slowly headed home. "I bet he thought he'd be carrying me home instead," she thought as they stumbled along. Every few minutes they'd stop to catch their breath, and then continued on again. Ichigo looked greener than the grass around them, and it was clear in his eyes that he regretted chugging that drink. Sure he proved that he could drink liquor, but he also proved that he was the true lightweight. Rukia had finished off the liquor bottle with ease, and wasn't even staggering or slurring. That alcohol was supposed to have a decent kick to it! How was she not affected at all by it? His whole plan was for her to be drunk to give him another excuse to carry her!

"Rukia... how are you not even tipsy?" Ichigo asked as he swayed back and forth.

"I honestly don't know. I've had drinks before, and typically its lieutenant Matsumoto who makes them-" "You... you don't have to say more," he replied before her answer could be complete. Anytime the name Matsumoto came into a discussion of alcohol, not much explanation was needed.

After trekking through fields for nearly an hour, Rukia was happy to let Ichigo lay down on her couch at home. Maybe if she left him there long enough he'd sleep off the sickness. She kindly told him he could stay there for a bit, and that she'd return once she'd changed into her pajamas. While half dressed in her shihakusho and half dressed in kitten print pajamas, a loud thud sounded. Quickly, Rukia rushed into the next room, only to find Ichigo face down on the floor. Helping him up, she tried to leave him in a chair this time, but with the same results. He could barely sit up while in his drunken and sick state. How could only a tiny drink affect someone so bad?! After twenty minutes of attempting to change, Rukia was relieved when she finally made it into her pajamas. Returning to where she'd left Ichigo, this time on the floor, she sighed when she saw no improvement in him. How could she send him home, or anywhere else for that matter, in this state? And with his lack of ability to lie on a couch without rolling off, where could she put him? "I feel like I'm treating him like an object," she mused as she thought another place to store the sickly berry.

Crouching down on the floor, Rukia very softly asked, "Do you think you can stand?"

"I can stand Rukia! I'm not as think as you drunk I am," he replied. But as soon as he tried to get to his feet, his face turned yet another shade of green. Letting out a long huff, she instructed him to lean on her yet again, and led him to her room. Helping him onto her bed, Rukia told him she'd be right back after grabbing coffee for him. Before she could even take a step out of the room, he called out, "I'll be ok! I just need to sleep this off or something."

"Well, I've seen Matsumoto sleep off a hangover before, so you could be right," she said.

Despite being so terribly sick, a triumphant expression came onto Ichigo's face at her comment of him being right. Moving as close to the wall as possible, he tried to leave enough room in her tiny bed for her to sleep as well. He knew she had to work in the morning, and he didn't want to see her stuck on a couch all night. Sitting back on her bed, Rukia couldn't help but smile when he finally fell asleep. Over the course of the next hour, her patient stayed asleep, though he did start to awaken each time she'd move. She shook her head as she wondered how she became a human pillow. After reading each card she'd been given, and seeing the sun's light shine through her curtains, Ichigo woke up.

Hugging his pillow tight, he mumbled, "Sorry I got so sick."

"It's alright," she replied.

"No, it was your birthday and all I did was wreck it. I've missed your past couple birthdays, and now I messed up this one. I just wanted to do something for you, and I couldn't even do that right," Ichigo said as he buried his face in the fabric of his pillow.

Tapping him lightly to get his attention, Rukia asked him to open his eyes. Not sure what she had up her sleeve, he pried his brown eyes open, and quickly sat up when he saw that she had been his pillow. Laughing, she replied, "You didn't ruin my birthday at all Ichigo. If anything, this is one of the best I've had."

Before he could say anything to her, Byakuya called out from the hall way, "There's a talking plush fox with a card on it saying it's from Kurosaki. Do something with it."

"Talking... plush... fox... Zorua!" Rukia cried as she jumped up in her bed.

Leaping out of the bed, she knocked Ichigo into the wall and dashed out the room. Returning just seconds later, she tightly held a large plush Pokemon. As she hugged and cuddled the toy, it began giggling like the character she adored. Smiling at the sight of such a happy lieutenant, Ichigo softly said, "Happy birthday Shinigami."