Cross-Posted to Ao3 under the penname MsThunderFrost - also featuring a much more explicit title.
"Kurosaki, what the fuck is this?" The teen turned away from the twisted ball of Christmas lights that he'd thus far been unsuccessful in untangling, to see Grimmjow eyeing the radio on the dining room table disdainfully. He rolled his eyes, before returning to his task ~ how the hell had the lights become so knotted sitting in a box all year?
"That would be a radio." Ichigo replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "It's a medium for people to hear news and listen to music. Kinda like a television, without the pictures."
If looks could kill... "I know what the fuck it is, asshole."
Ichigo quirked one reddish-brown eyebrow, "Oh? Well then why waste your breath asking about it?"
"I meant why in the fuck are we listening to Christmas music when it's the middle of fucking November." Grimmjow bit out through gritted teeth, yanking the gaudy blue and white Santa hat, which Karin had absolutely insisted that he wear, off of his head. "It ain't even snowing outside."
"Sorry that I can't control the weather." He snarked, finally managing to unknot the lights. It was only then that he realized that one of the bulbs was dead. Wonderful.
"Daddy, Daddy look ~" Grimmjow turned just in time for a little girl with a mess of chocolate brown and azure curls and bright, cyan eyes to shove a piece of brightly colored candy at his stomach, just above his hollow hole. "Urahara-san called it a 'candy cane'. He said that it tastes like something called 'peppermint'."
The Arrancar rolled his eyes, "Right. Because you definitely need to have more sugar." Nevertheless, he unwrapped the candy for her, grimacing when his hands became sticky from the sweet treat. "I hope that you at least thanked the old fool." But she wasn't listening, making her way over to Ichigo instead.
"Oi, Strawberry-san, whatcha doing?" She asked, plopping her tiny body into Ichigo's lap without preamble and picking up one of the colorful tree ornaments with her free hand.
Ichigo's left eye twitched, "Well, I was trying to decorate the tree."
Her bright blue eyes widened almost comically, "Can I help?!"
Sometimes, it was difficult to believe that this little bundle of energy was actually Grimmjow's daughter. When Ichigo had first met her, it had only been a few months since Grimmjow and his Fraccion had launched their failed attack on Karakura Town. She'd only appeared to be a few years old (later, he'd discover that that was a generous estimate ~ in reality, she was closer to about nine months old), with snow-white, furry ears atop her head and a thin, blue and white striped tail curling behind her.
She'd been in the company of several Adjuchas, who'd seemed to be... babysitting her. Ichigo had had a few words for Grimmjow regarding his 'parenting style', thinking it was alright to leave a defenseless child, brimming with spiritual pressure, in the hands of half a dozen mid-ranked Hollows who would just as likely to devour her and assimilate her into their being as they would watch over her. As he would soon discover, however, little Elsinore Jaegerjacques was perhaps even more terrifying than her father.
Grimmjow would later explain that, while he attempted to limit her biological father's influence on her as much as possible, he could see him in her, sometimes. Not much was able to phase the Sexta Espada, but Ichigo had seen first hand how Aizen was able to cow the loud-mouthed, arrogant Arrancar with only a glance. The blue-haired spirit would likely never tell him about what had happened after their first meeting to make him so afraid of the Shinigami, but Ichigo had his suspicions...
He'd also met Aizen enough times to understand Grimmjow's fears. Elsinore, at only a few months old, was able to cow the Adjuchas into submission ~ the Hollows were so awed by her power, they agreed to become her playthings in exchange for her protection. Gillians could not even stand in her presence. And her she was, smiling at him.
Ichigo didn't know whether he should be awed at the amount of love and respect reflected in the little girl's gaze... or truly, unabashedly scared for his life.
"You're good with her." Grimmjow reflected, watching as Ichigo slipped the little girl onto his shoulders and handed her the star, glistening with golden glitter. He held her steady as she placed it atop the tree, fidgeting with it for a few moments in an effort to get it to sit straight.
Ichigo patted her leg, "It's not hard. She's a good kid." He didn't miss the way that Grimmjow smiled at that, "You've done a good job with her."
"Yeah, she's pretty decent. Guess I'll keep her." Elsinore stuck her tongue out at him, and Grimmjow, ever the epitome of maturity, returned the gesture. "And... thanks."
"Strawberry-san, try some candy!" Without waiting for a response, she promptly shoved the candy cane into Ichigo's mouth. Grimmjow snorted as the teen choked, eyes watering as he was accidentally forced to deep throat the sweet, peppermint-flavored confection.
Elsinore tumbled off of his shoulders and landed on her butt with a soft thwump. Her face twisted up like she was about to cry, but thought better of it as soon as the radio switched over to a newer rendition of Santa Claus is Coming to Town. "What was that about her being a 'good kid'?" Grimmjow snickered, watching as she raced to the counter.
"Daddy, Daddy, what's a Santa Claus?" She asked, before turning back to Ichigo. "I only said you could try some candy. Gimme!" Ichigo happily handed the candy cane back.
"The hell if I know." Grimmjow said, throwing his hands into the air in defeat. "Why don't you go bother the old man with some of these questions? Daddy's busy."
Elsinore pouted, mumbling something about sticking a lump of coal into Grimmjow's stocking (a tradition that Karin had explained to her) before leaving to go find Isshin. Even though he held that he was too young for grandchildren, he'd come to accept that his son was in a committed relationship with Grimmjow and that the two Arrancar were a package deal. Just as long as Ichigo wasn't planning on having any of his own anytime soon...
While Grimmjow was lost in his own little world, Ichigo was busy digging through the boxes of ornaments and decorations for something in particular. He made a small noise of triumph when he finally found what he was looking for ~ a small branch with dark green foliage. How it had survived, tucked in as it was under all of those heavy articles, he'd never know. Turning to Grimmjow, he flashed him a mischievious smile and teasingly waved it in front of his face.
Grimmjow's cyan brows knit together in confusion, "What the fuck is that? A leaf? I know that your human customs are weird, but come the fuck on ~ really?"
Ichigo just shook his head, "You know, I can't really account for why the radio stations decide to play holiday music so early. Or why people decide to decorate their houses when the weather has yet to change." He produced the twig, dangling it between their faces, "But I can tell you one nice thing about breaking out the decorations a little early."
"You get another chance at solving the age-old mystery of how that twig hasn't died yet?" He offered not-so-helpfully.
"It's plastic, you dumbass." Ichigo rolled his eyes. "And no. More like, I don't have to wait until December to do this." He closed the distance between them, locking their lips in a gentle kiss. Grimmjow didn't even hesitate, immediately melting into the smaller man's touch.
After a moment, Grimmjow drew back, his lips pulled back into his classic smirk. "Kurosaki, you should know by now that you don't need some flimsy piece of plastic for that."
Ichigo just laughed, "Merry early Christmas, Grimmjow."