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Summary: After Rangiku causes problems for Kira, things go horribly wrong when she tries to help him out. Now he thinks he's a dog! Even worse, Ichigo is afflicted with the same problem. Now she has to hide this from everyone and hopes her Captain will help her keep the barking duo a secret. R&R please!

Bleach and its characters belong to Tite Kubo. This is just a fanfiction written for fun. No profit is being made.

Please enjoy.

Chapter 1:

"It's not that bad," Rangiku said in a whiny tone as she followed Kira down the hall. "You're being sensitive."

"You really think I'm delicate?" Kira asked her with horrified eyes. "That I break easily?"

"Actually, my exact word was 'fragile' but…"

"Well, that's so much better!" Kira picked up the pace but Rangiku continued to follow him.

"I was just saying…"

"You think I can't handle it? You think I'll run away? When have I ever run from a battle? I'm always there for my friends. I can't believe you think that about me."

"I never said you weren't," she told him, breathing down his neck. "You're an excellent fighter. You're just a bit timid."

"Timid!" Kira grabbed his head, moaning. "You think I'm timid!"

"Well, you are! Look, it's not that we can't rely on you. Far from it. But in situations like these, it might be best if you sit it out. We can't have you freezing up or worse."

"Are you saying you can't depend on me?"

"No, not at all! We just can't have you letting people down."

Kira spun around. "You just contradicted yourself in the same statement!" he cried. "Either I'm reliable or I'm not. Which is it? Do you think I can do this?"

"This?" Rangiku raised her brows. "Well, it's hard to say. I'm sure you could, but given how you tend to be, I wouldn't count on it. I just don't want to take any chances."

Kira's mouth fell open. "So that's how you really feel? That I'm not cut out for this?"

"It's not that I have no faith in you. It's just that I don't think you have what it takes given how you tend to be. That's all."

Rangiku thought she was making it better, but she made it so much worse. She didn't even realize her statements were very similar. Kira interpreted them to mean the same thing. Even if he didn't, the second half of what she said wasn't very flattering.

Kira slowly turned around, his shoulders slumped.

"Feeling better?" she asked him, oblivious to the storm cloud over his head.

"Sure. Loads better."

"Great!" She gave him a pat on the back. "You'd better get back to work. Don't want to make people angry, right?"

"Rangiku!"

She flinched at her Captain's voice coming from the open window above them.

She could either see what he was so angry about, or, knowing that she was most likely the culprit, she could avoid him by getting some snacks. If she hid long enough, he might cool down, making the inevitable lecture more bearable.

She decided to go see what he wanted.

"What is this?" he asked her, holding up a sheet of paper.

"A document you need to fill out, Captain," she told him.

"I meant this!" He pointed to a brown ring over the center of the paper and a large smear over the part that required his signature.

"Hot chocolate."

"Were you using the papers as a coaster again?"

"Not on purpose," she told him. "The papers were on the table and I had to put my drink down on something. Sorry for the smudge. There was a spill when I put the cup down."

Hitsugaya sat down with a heavy sigh. "I can't fill it out now. Look at it. The part I need to sign is covered in a stain and if I do try to write on it, the paper's going to fall apart. It's soaked!"

"I did try to dry it off."

Someone came into their office and stood next to Rangiku.

"What in the world did you say to Kira?" asked Renji.

"Huh? Why?"

"He's sulking in the courtyard. What did you say to him?"

"Hm? Oh!" She smiled. "Nothing. He was feeling a little down about our conversation so I cheered him up."

"I think you made things worse. He doesn't look very cheered up to me."

"He was upset that I thought he was timid so I told him it wasn't because of his personality, it was his ability that I doubted. Or was it the other way around? Not sure how I phrased it."

"They both should pretty horrible to me," Renji grumbled.

"I just told him that it's not his ability in battle, it's his ability at everything else. I may have also called him sensitive."

Renji slapped himself in the forehead. "I don't even want to know what else you told him."

"What? What did I do?"

"What's this about, anyway?" asked Hitsugaya.

"Oh, it's a thing the Lieutenants are doing. Like a tournament. It's nothing too serious. Basically, it's a big game," Rangiku told him excitedly. "We all drew names from a hat to see who would be on what team and Kira was on ours. There's a series of puzzles you have to solves and games you get to play and then at the end, there's a match for top points. We're going to be using the dojo in the 11th Division. Ikkaku said he wanted in on the last round. Probably because it involves fighting."

"Uh-huh. And?" Hitsugaya asked her unenthusiastically. "You spoke with Kira after he was placed in your team?"

"Yeah. I told him if we had any chance of winning, he might want to check his shyness at the door or just not show up."

"What a horrible thing to say!" Renji and Hitsugaya yelled at once.

"What? You know how he can be. When it comes to things like this, he tends to second-guess himself. What if he's doing a puzzle and freezes up? What if he has to answer trivia questions and doubts he has the right answer? We can't have him doing that if we expect to win."

"He's acting nervous because you're putting so much pressure on him," said Hitsugaya.

"No, I'm not. He was acting all nervous before I said anything to him. That's why I talked to him afterward."

"Maybe he's acting nervous because he thinks everyone expects so much of him. It's just a game. He probably thinks you guys are going to take it seriously and can't let you guys down," said Hitsugaya. "He wants you guys to believe in him. He doesn't want to let you down."

"But he doesn't seem to believe in himself. That's why I'm worried we won't win. He's too timid."

"He just lacks confidence," Hitsugaya explained. "He always has. It's a part of his personality. People putting pressure on him isn't helping that. It's making it worse."

"I want to win this thing as much as the next guy," said Renji, "but scaring Kira isn't the way to do it. He'll never be confident if we doubt him from the get-go. We need to give him a chance."

Rangiku put her hands on her hips. "Oh, come on. Don't tell me you don't feel the same way."

"Of course, I do. I know the guy's a nervous wreck, but I know better than to say it to his face just before a game."

"If this is just a game, no one has to take this seriously," Hitsugaya said. "It's a game. It's supposed to be fun."

"It's fun if you win," Renji said matter-of-factly.

"Playing tends to be the fun part, but winning is a perk," Hitsugaya told him. "Instead of being worried you won't win because of him, try telling Kira it's not a big deal. If he's in it to have fun and isn't so focused on winning, he might actually help you win. If he's worried, that will jeopardize your chances. He needs to calm down and have fun. Don't put all this pressure on him and make him worry."

"Yeah, yeah," Renji said with a sigh. "I guess that's true."

Rangiku pouted. "I'd still like to win."

"Isn't this a friendly game?" Hitsugaya asked her.

"It is."

It was, but Renji was already placing bets on who would win among the other Lieutenants. Hisagi was on the other team so he was quick to bet on himself and his team. Renji doubled the price. An action he was already regretting after learning what Rangiku had said to their teammate. They had to fix Kira soon or get him to quit before the game began. Renji did not want to lose his bet.

They weren't supposed to place bets, but it wasn't against the rules either.

"Say, while I'm here, do you have that paperwork I need to pick up?" Renji asked.

"Oh, yeah!" Rangiku went over to Hitsugaya's desk. "Here it is."

She yanked a piece of paper out from under his cup, knocking it over and spilling hot tea all over the other papers.

Hitsugaya sat frozen with rage as the tea poured into his lap.

Rangiku slowly backed away. "Sorry, Captain… But you did leave the cup on top of the paper, so in a way it is kind of your fault."

Hitsugaya was still frozen, but the redness in his face told her that his mounting rage was about to send him into a frenzy.

"You have five seconds to get out of my office," he said in a calm voice.

"Now you want me to leave? You're always trying to keep me in here."

"Two seconds." He could no longer force his voice to remain calm and was beginning to creak.

"Ok, bye." Rangiku ran out the door, pulling Renji with her.

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