Usually, Christmas Eve was a busy day for her family. They celebrated it together, and her father left them right after midnight, because the clinic was always crawling under patients. Even so, they always had lots of fun, she mused. But this Christmas would be different. While she was sighing, Rukia came in the kitchen.

“Don’t worry too much,” she grinned, “your brother will be soon on his feet. It’s only a cold.”

She nodded. “Yes, I know, but,” pouted Yuzu, “he’s so irascible when he’s sick. Besides, he won’t eat my porridge,” she added, looking at the mixture. “It would help him, I don’t understand why he’s so difficult!”

“I’ll make him eat,” chuckled Rukia. “And take his medicine too!” She winked playfully, took a tray and began to put some porridge in a bowl.

“Thank you, Rukia,” smiled Yuzu.

It was true, she thought, that Rukia had her way with her brother, and could always make him fun things to do. For example, he hadn’t helped them with the Christmas decorations for ages, but for her, he did make an effort. And they had fun, really –even if he still refused to decorate his room. But because Ichi-nii caught a cold, now Christmas Eve is messed up…

She sighed again while looking at Rukia who was bringing the food to her brother.

She cautiously entered Ichigo’s bedroom. He was half asleep, fighting the high fever he had since early in the morning. She placed the tray on the desk, and checked the wet cloth she had put on his forehead. It was already warm, she noticed. She sat down on his bed, taking the pills in one hand.

“Ichigo,” she said softly.

He barely opened his eyes. “Let me sleep!” he moaned in protest.

She smirked. “Don’t be such a kid, Ichigo, and take your medicine.”

“I’ll be alright without those, don’t worry.” Even though he just said that, he seemed to not be really able to talk or think properly.

“Yeah, yeah, of course,” she said. Without listening him anymore, she grasped his shoulders and forced him to sit down.

“Hey, what are you-?”

She didn’t give him enough time to complain, that he was already eating the pills. In a swift movement, she took the glass, poured some water in it, and forced him to drink. “Now,” she smiled, “it’s time to eat that porridge Yuzu made for you…”

His eyes widened. “But,” he protested, “I hate porri-!”

As soon as his mouth was opened again, a spoon with some porridge arrived in it. “What did you say?” she asked in her forced, cute tone that he hated probably more than porridge.

He gulped, swallowing the mixture. “Hey, don’t do that! I’m the bed-ridden one here!”

“It’s your fault for not being cooperative,” she replied, menacing him with the spoon.

“Me, not being cooperative?” He crossed his arms, looking more pissed than ever.

“And there I thought that idiots don’t catch colds,” she retorted.

“What?”

“I-d-i-o-t!” she spelled slowly. “You’re ill, you need to take medicine and eat a bit. And look at you! If you’re not acting like a fool, then I don’t know what a fool is!”

He scrapped the subject, looking tired. “Alright,” he mumbled. “I’ll eat.”

He truly hated porridge. Only Rukia could make him eat it, really. He only had half of the bowl, that he couldn’t take it anymore. She forced him to eat more though. And then smiled, before putting a nice, cold wet cloth on his forehead, again. He was painfully aware that he was in a pitiful state, where he couldn’t protect anyone. Rukia was gone, to take back the tray in the kitchen. Why did he have to catch a cold on that day? He was angry at himself, because lately he hadn’t been as cautious with his health as he used to be. That’s what I got for thinking I was some sort of hero. Rukia scolded him enough on that matter, saying that even if he was a shinigami, he needed to take care of himself, especially since his body was still alive, and mind you, shinigamis can still fall sick, remember Ukitake-taichou That was the day right before, when he got outside without any jacket because he forgot to put one on, when he heard her calling him from outside. First, was it his fault if she screamed his name? Sure, he felt like a fool, when she and his sisters threw snowballs at his head, and he then understood that they just wanted to play. And he got caught in the action, immediately retaliating. When, ten minutes later, Rukia realized that he hadn’t any jacket on, she freaked out. It was true that it was cold, but he couldn’t feel it, as he was moving a lot. But then again, it was too late, as he was already wet.

When he reopened his eyes, the first thing that went through his mind was –when the hell did I fall asleep- Rukia’s concerned look, who was changing the cloth on his forehead, once again. He was still ditzy, but felt better now. The effect of the bitter medicine his father gave him, he guessed.

“You’re feeling guilty, right?” he mumbled. Damn, how come the words had such a hard time to come out his mouth? “That’s why you’re taking care of me.” What else did he need to say? He forgot. Damn that mind of his.

“Fool,” was her reply. He opened his eyes a little bit more. She looked really pissed. “Why should I be guilty over your fault? Can’t I be worried just because you’re sick?”

He tried to find something to say, but couldn’t find anything, and quickly shut his mouth. “Anyway,” he finally whispered, “thank you…”

“Oh, did I hear right?” she grinned. “You’ll thank me after taking another shot of that medicine!”

“No way,” he grumbled. “It’s awfully bitter!” He was quite sure his father chose the worst medicine just for him.

“By the way, Ichigo,” she suddenly asked with a sneaky look on her face, “do you like the decoration in your room?”

What is she talking about? For the first time since he awoke, he looked around him. And sat up so fast that it made his head spin. “What’s THAT?” he inquired, gaping at the Christmas decorations she had put everywhere. Gaping was obviously a bad move, as she threw the pill in his mouth, once again. He wanted to spit it out, but she came so close to him to force him to drink some water that he nearly forgot about that taste.

“Good boy,” she grinned.

“Stop making fun of me,” he growled. “Seriously,” he sighed, “why did I have to catch a cold, today on all days?” Why, for her first Christmas…?

“You know,” she lectured him, “your body is still alive. You have to put up with this, you can sicken more than any shinigami. And even a shinigami can sicken sometimes, so you see…”

“Yeah, yeah, I caught that pretty well, thanks,” he retorted.

“You should rest some more,” she added. “Maybe tonight you’ll feel better, and you’ll be able to eat with us.” Gently, she pushed him back in his bed.

“I’m fed up with sleeping,” he complained.

“Don’t be such a kid, Ichigo,” she grinned. Her grip was strong, and he was forced to accept his defeat. Momentarily.

She watched him as he fell asleep, once again. That wasn’t a normal Christmas Eve, she guessed, but then again, they couldn’t help it. Besides that, she wasn’t even sure that Ichigo really wanted to celebrate it. When she talked about that day, and asked him what it was, he only explained her roughly the whole idea, but refused to make some preparations or whatsoever. She had to kick him so he would help his family to decorate the tree and the house. But now…

A discreet knock on the door, and Yuzu came in.

“How is Ichi-nii?” she asked.

“A little bit better, but he’s still feverish…”

Isshin then appeared at the door, and made them come to him. “Your idea is neat, Rukia-chan,” he whispered, “I’m sure we’ll have a lot of fun! It’s time to finish the preparations right now.”

“Thank you, Uncle,” she murmured. “I’m sure Ichigo will appreciate.”

“He will, but say he won’t,” commented Karin, who was spying them. “So it’s a good thing to do.”

Rukia chuckled, and closed the door behind her, very softly. They still had a lot of things to do.

When he awoke again, his room was filled by darkness. Yuzu must have made dinner, he realized, because the smell of their dinner was all over the house.

“Rukia?” he asked, unsure.

“I am here, Ichigo,” he heard her. A mere second later, he could feel her hand on his.

“Why didn’t you keep the light on?”

“Oh,” she replied, “it’s because…” She suddenly stopped, and he damned the lack of light, because he really couldn’t tell what was going on.

While he was wondering, his door opened. Several things happened then: fairy lights that he didn’t notice before flared suddenly, and his sisters entered, with candles in their hands. His father closed the door behind him, coming in too. Rukia lighten up some candles, and now the room had a warm feeling.

“What…” He couldn’t finish his sentence. Slowly, he sat up, and looked around more carefully. There was a tray with some plates, another with lots of food, but the most startling thing was…

“Since you’re ill and can’t really get out of your bed, we thought that it would be a good idea if Christmas came to you,” beamed Rukia.

… Rukia who was wearing a very cute –and somehow sexy- miss Santa outfit. He gaped, and tried not to stare too much. “Rukia… where did you get that outfit?” he finally asked.

“Oh yeah, I decided to dress everyone!” grinned his father. At that point, he realized that he was dressed up as Santa, and that his sisters were wearing Santa’s helper outfits.

“If you laugh,” gritted Karin, “I swear I’ll kill you Ichi-nii!”

“Aw, don’t say that, Karin!” exclaimed Yuzu. “It’s really cute!”

“Don’t we look like a cute family, Ichigo?” inquired his old man, hugging the three girls in one swift motion.

“Idiot!” he growled, “she’s not your daughter,” he added, pointing Rukia, “and I’m your son!”

“Aw, you can’t be jealous of Rukia-chan, she’s much cuter than you you know. You can’t blame me there! Besides, you’re very mean for Rukia-chan!”

He rolled his eyes up, feeling too tired to fight with his father for now. Yuzu clasped her hands, deciding to change the subject. “It’s time to eat, not to fight!” she claimed.

“Yeah,” he approved, “good idea Yuzu.”

The dinner was really good, and the medicine he took some time ago prevented him to feel too ditzy. They ate too much, laughed a lot, and had a really good time together. Christmas had always been important in his family, as his father liked to celebrate any occasion to spend some time bonding with his children. However, this time, it was even warmer. Was it because Rukia was there too?

A blink of the eye later, and they all left his room, saved Rukia who had decided to stay by his side for now.

“By the way,” he suddenly realized, “where is Kon?”

“Oh, your sister kidnapped him, talking about dressing him with a cute Santa outfit she sewed for him,” she replied, chuckling.

“At least, it was peaceful. I can’t imagine if he had been there too…”

“Yup. But now, you should sleep, Ichigo. It’s getting late. Midnight already!”

“Midnight? Oh, then…” He made an awfully tiring effort, and stood up.

“What are you doing?” she exclaimed, trying to get him back in his bed.

He opened a drawer in his desk, and took the carefully wrapped gift, before giving it to her. “Merry Christmas,” he said, looking away.

She blinked, looking really surprised. “This is… for me?”

“Is there anyone else in this room?” he grunted.

“Why… thank you…”

He eyed her while she unwrapped the present, uncovering a bundle.

“What’s this?” she asked, beginning to open it. She dug out a little bottle, a delighted look painted on her face. “Perfume?”

“Well, I couldn’t find anything you’d want, aside Chappy of course…” He wasn’t about to tell her that he first tried to buy a cameo Chappy, but ended up thinking that it wasn’t a gift good enough, since she could lose it or break it while fighting. Not to mention that the vendor really tried to make him buy that ring, obviously thinking it was for his girlfriend.

However, she already opened the bottle, sniffing the scent. It was a very soft, light and aristocratic scent. “It smells so good!” she exclaimed. Without thinking more, she applied the perfume behind her ears with the elegant bottle’s cap.

He could hardly breathe. No one ever told him that a woman applying perfume was so sexy and seductive. She probably didn’t mean it, nor realized it, he tried to think, desperately trying to cool down. She was closing the bottle again when he stretched out his arm toward her.

“Ichigo?” she asked, really surprised when she felt his fingers in her hair.

“Let me… smell it…” he somehow managed to reply, putting his head on her neck. It felt so good, so much better than the original perfume, he decided.

She could feel the deep blush covering all her face. What was he thinking? Was it because he lost his head, too feverish to think? Come to think about it, his breath is really hot…

That wasn’t good at all, because she had taken so much care to not let her emotions take control of her those past months. And now, he was doing that? But it was as if all her strength had left her, and she wasn’t able to retaliate like she usually did.

When he kissed her, she had already given up. The kiss was deep and hot, making her head spin. When they stopped, she barely heard a “Thank you” before he passed out.

“Idiot,” she mumbled, taking him back to his bed. She put down the perfume on his desk, and sat on his bed, using a wet cloth to refresh his face a bit.

When he awoke, this morning, he was feeling extremely well. No fever, he thought, delighted.

Then, he realized that someone was right beside him. Rukia? Who incidentally made him think about that amazing dream he had… At that moment he spotted the bottle on his desk, and felt the heat rising. So, that wasn’t a dream… he gulped.

Rukia slid, and groaned, and his attention focused on her again. Something’s wrong, he noticed. He put a hand on her forehead, and quickly jumped on his feet. She had a high fever. Gently, he put her in his bed, under the sheets, and ran out of his room.

“Old man,” he exclaimed, as soon as he saw him. “Rukia has a fever!”

“She has?” he asked back, surprised. He rummaged in the medicine they had at home, and gave him a bottle with a spoon. “Once every four hours,” he grinned.

“Syrup? Why did I have pills yesterday?” He frowned deeply, trying to get why she hadn’t got the same medicine as him.

“You don’t expect me to give to my daughter that pill which has a horrible taste, do you? This syrup is strawberry-flavoured, it’ll be much better,” grinned the old jerk.

“WHAT? Why didn’t I have that yesterday?” he shouted.

“By the way, do you know the saying? That you if you pass the fever through a kiss, it will be worse than what it was for you the day before,” continued his father, smirking.

He stared at him in disbelief. “I don’t know what you are talking about,” he replied, going back to his room.

“Yeah, sure!” cried his father. “Papa is so happy!” The stupid man kept blabbering, but he refused to listen more, for his own sake. Although that thing about the fever being worse for Rukia did worry him. He sighed, looking at the syrup. So unfair, I can’t even get my revenge from yesterday…

A/N: obviously, a Christmas fic erm… weird I guess XD I hope you enjoyed it XD

This was written for the BF contest :)

For those who follow Normality, I’m nearing the end of the chapter too. I don’t know when I’ll be able to finish it, though, with all those Christmas things to do