Back to Those Days in the Jurianan

by Warrayfinson

Hitsugaya gets a serious head injury, rendering him unconscious. Naturally, Momo and Rangiku worry about how he will be after he wakes up. What they didn't expect when he woke up was...that he's six years old! Hitsuhina

AN: Hey everyone!

Well, this is a mega SUPER LONG oneshot! This is something I have been working on for the past few hours, and now it's finally done. I was originally going to make into a full length, chapter story but I realised that if I did that I wouldn't have enough time to finish 'The Last 24 Hours.'

The idea for this came after I started thinking about what Hitsugaya was like in his childhood, and how Momo was able to accept him and put up with his cold attitude.

I'm really sorry if the story is OOC ^^; However, I hope you enjoy it :)

Disclaimer: I own this USB, this laptop, this battery charger, this biology report, this copy of iDeath Note/i volume 6, this bowl of ice cream and this spoon with the ice cream on it, Tite Kubo owns BLEACH.

Back to Those Days in the Junrinan

He was beyond irritated. He was sitting here, working, when he should have had some time off. That lazy lieutenant of his was out drinking her butt off, and here he was, writing up her papers and reports. Doing her work.

A vein popped out on the side of his forehead at his current predicament.

"Shiro-chan?"

Hitsugaya stopped writing.

There was a knock. "Shiro-chan, are you in?"

He cringed at the nickname, but otherwise didn't respond to her call. He continued writing. It was only seconds later before she called out again. "Shiro-chan! Are you in there?"

Another vein popped out from his temple. He pressed the brush harder into the sheet of paper, creating a huge splotch of black ink in the middle. It took all of his will power to not snap the brush in half.

"I'm coming in…" The door slid aside, revealing the smiling face of his childhood friend . Her brown eyes found him and her smile widened. "Shiro-chan!"

"It's Hitsugaya-taicho!" he exclaimed a bit too harshly. Realising how harsh his words sounded, he quickly looked up to see her reaction. She was still smiling, surprisingly. He kept his face neutral, trying to hide the irritation he was feeling. "What do you want?"

"I just wanted to see how you were," she said idly, coming to sit on one of sofas in his office. He looked at her, seeing that that wasn't the reason why she had. "What are you really for, Hinamori?"

The fifth division lieutenant turned her head to him, amazed that he had guessed correctly. "How did you see through me, Hitsugaya-kun?" she said with a nervous giggle.

"It's Hitsugaya-taicho, bed wetter," he muttered and continued with his work.

Ignoring the old nickname, Momo told her real reason for coming to see him. "Well, I was wondering if you would like to come with me to the festival in theJunrinan. This year they've extended it so that it's not just in west Rukongai and it's on in about three weeks. They'll have watermelons, and amanatto too! They have a competition for your favourite game on, spinning tops! I know how much you love that game!"

"I don't do spinning tops anymore. It's a childish game…" he said bluntly. "As it is I can't go. I have a meeting and this paperwork to do, because knowing Matsumoto" –he grumbled the name barely out of his lips –"she'll want to go to."

There was silence for a moment. He considered looking up to see how she had reacted, but then she spoke. Her voice nothing more than a whisper, but he still heard her words. "I sometimes wish you were a kid again…"

He stopped writing, hearing what she had whispered. 'No…she couldn't have said that…' he thought with a frown. "What was that?"

"Eh, nothing!" Momo said in a rush. "I just thought you could do with a break from your work, Hitsugaya-kun."

"You forget what I am, and that's why you should start calling my 'Hitsugaya-taicho', so then you'll know I'm a captain, and captains have a lot of work to do." He was stating in a matter-of-fact tone, but some of his irritation got through.

Momo looked at him, the same nervous expression on her face."Hitsugaya-"

"Taichoooo!"

Both shinigami looked up in shock to the doorway. Because Momo had forgotten close the door, they both had a view of a half naked Kira and a kissed marked Hisagi carrying a very drunk Rangiku. Both men were drunk, but not as much as the slumping, strawberry blonde lieutenant.

"Eh, Hinamori?" Kira exclaimed, suddenly ashamed of his half nakedness. He quickly attempted to cover up his chest, letting go of Rangiku. All of her weight sent Hisagi tumbling forward and hitting the ground. Strangely though, his fall was somehow cushioned. He lifted his head to see what had saved him from a massive lump on his forehead. Suddenly, he fell back from a nose bleed. His head…had landed in between the two Himalayan mountains, or more common known as Rangiku's breasts.

He scuttled away, attempting wipe away the kiss marks and blood running profusely down from his nose. "Eh, H-Hitsugaya-taicho! M-Matsumoto was, eh…just staggerin' everywhere, so…we decided to give her a lift!"

Kira nodded in agreement. Not wanting to get frozen for their actions, the two male lieutenants were quick to leave, running like two drunk maniacs out of the tenth division barracks.

Rangiku got up and grinned. "Taaaichooo and Hiiina-chaaan! Am I haaappy to see you!" She then rushed to the shocked girl and suffocated her in a tight hug. "I haaaaven't seen you in such a loooong time!"

"R-Ran…Rangiku" Momo was choking and coughing for air.

Seeing this, Rangiku let go but still grinned at the petite lieutenant. "Whatcha dooooing here?"

"I, um…I came to ask Hitsugaya-kun something."

Suddenly, the strawberry blonde lieutenant straightened and her eyes widened. She grabbed Momo by the shoulders and leaned in close. "Did he finally tell you?"

"T-T-Tell me what?" Momo asked, surprised by Rangiku's sudden change of mood.

The drunken woman shook the girl almost violently. "He didn't? Whaaaaat?" She let go of the girl and smack her hands over her own blushing cheeks in shock.

In the background, Hitsugaya was reaching a whole new level of irritation.

"R-Rangiku-san?" Momo was worried. Rangiku was drunk, having wild mood swings and Hitsugaya's reaitsu was rising in the background.

Rangiku turned around, grinning at Momo. "You know, I know you have the saaame secret!"

"What?"

"You liiiiiiiiiike taicho!"

Hitsugaya's eyebrow started to twitch.

"What? Don't be silly Rangiku-san!" Momo exclaimed, but her cheeks betrayed her by blushing a bright pink.

"I know it's truuuue!"

One more word from either of them and he'd-

"I mean he may look like a kid…buuut he does have those urges-!"

At those words from his lieutenant, he snapped.

He swiftly stood up and slammed his palms on his desk. The two women looked at the white haired captain in surprise. Rangiku was somewhat knocked out of her drunken state, while Momo jumped in shock. She had wondered if it was because of the sudden slam or if it was because of his expression that she jumped.

Hitsugaya was beyond annoyed, and it showed on his expression. "Will you two just shut up!" he exclaimed. "Why are you arguing over something so trivial? Unlike you two, I have a lot work to do…Or more like, your work!"

He sharply turned his head to Rangiku, too annoyed and anger to stop."You're as lazy as your zanpukto! I'm not some stupid kid! I'm the captain of this division for goodness sake! Stop going out and get off your lazy ass for once!

"And you, Hinamori, will just stop calling me Shiro-chan! I'm not a kid! Why the heck would I want to go do such childish things? Start treating me like an adult and calling me 'Hitsugaya-taicho!" The anger was beyond his control…as he said "And I don't like you! Why the hell would I? Who would like that way when you act like such a child?"

The room was silent. Rangiku looked between her friend and her captain. Unlike Momo she could take a few hits from her captain. Momo though…

Hitsugaya realised why Momo's expression became one of pain and shock. He realised what he had said. All those things he didn't mean. He was frozen, his skin turning cold, waiting to hear her yell at him and stomp off.

He was more pained to see that that didn't happen. Instead she painfully and sadly smiled. With a nervous giggle, she said, her voice trembling at some words "Really? I never realised! I didn't realise I was being such a pain to you, Hi…Hitsugaya…taicho."

He was about to assure he didn't mean any of it, but she continued. "I understand…I guess I am very childish. I should act more grown up now, shouldn't I? I mean, I am older than you and you're already acting so mature, so I should be more sensible. You must think I am pretty stupid and foolish to think you would still like those things and be able to go to the festival. And you're right; who would like someone who acts like a child? I'm sorry, Hitsugaya-taicho. I…I'm really sorry!"

Before she turned, he swore he saw a tear falling. She ran out of the office, trying to keep it at a calm walk, but it turnout to be a scrambled run to get out. Unconsciously, Hitsugaya reached his hand out towards her.

"Hinamori!" Rangiku called out just as the girl ran past the doorway. She began to run after her, reaching the doorway. "Hinamori, wait!"

She looked down the hall, but didn't see any sign of the upset girl. She was already gone. Rangiku turned back to her captain, clearly angry. "What's wrong with you? Geez, you could've let your anger out on me, but Hina-!"

Her captain calmly walked past her. She stared at him in confusion. Before she could say anything, he flash stepped away. 'He's gone to look for her,' she thought. She was tempted to go find her too, but this was none of her business, and she knew that. These two had to sort this out. Still…she couldn't believe that the one who started all of this was her captain. She sighed, feeling her drunken state take over again. She was drowsy and very tired. Her legs carried her to the couch, where she collapsed and fell asleep.

---

Morning light beamed through the windows. Some birds could be heard chirping nearby. The air around the office was warm. Rangiku woke up to this morning, her eyes hazy at first. When her vision cleared, she saw her currently location and tried to remember what happened last night.

She sat up, clutching her head. She winced at the minor migraine that was forming there. 'I should be use to these by now,' she thought pneumatically. She shook her head, finally focusing.

She remembered now.

She went out drinking with Kira and Hisagi, but got carried back here by both of them. There was an argument…and then someone ran out…

Momo!

She stood up at remembering this and half expected her captain to be at his desk. All that greeted her was an empty chair and paperless desk. She strode to his quarters, again not greeted by his presence. If he wasn't here, where was he? She ran out of her division, calling out "Hitsugaya-taicho!"

She looked all round the barracks and found him nowhere. She asked her subordinates and members of the division if they had seen him. They hadn't a clue where he was. There were only two other places she could think of. His granny's house or the fifth division. She was willing to place all the odd on the fifth division and ran to the said location.

The strawberry blonde lieutenant began to wonder what happened between the two childhood friends last night. Did they make up? She was ready scowled Hitsugaya if they hadn't. Maybe he stayed the night over there. Knowing Momo she would still be having nightmares every now and then, and knowing her captain, he would've stayed over at the girl's quarters to comfort her.

'I wonder if he-'

Something caught her eye, a familiar white. She skidded to a stop and looked down the alleyway between the two buildings in front of her. Her eyes widened at the sight that lay there. She sprinted to the fallen shinigami.

"Taicho?"

---

Momo sluggishly walked out of her division barracks. She sighed as the rays of sunlight hit her skin. They were a warming comfort to her tired and saddened emotions. She didn't want to remember last night, it was too painful. How he had yelled at her with that angry expression…

She winced seeing the whole scene play in her head.

How could she have been such a fool? She should have known he wouldn't be able to go, nor would he want to. She thought about going to go apologize to him again, but he mightn't want to see her. Judging from how angry he was last night…

She stopped and realised how frightened she was to go see him.

Maybe she could go do some paper work instead. It would keep her distracted…for a few hours.

That wasn't long enough to keep her from thinking about his hurtful words…

Something fluttered in the corner of her eye. She turned her head and gasped when she saw it was a hell butterfly. She held her hand out to the creature, and it took her gesture of kindness by landing gently on her palm.

'Hinamori-san, please report to the head tenth division office,' it informed her 'Hitsugaya-taicho has been severely injured, and Matsumoto has requested your presence for further information.' The butterfly flew from her palm back into the sky.

Momo stood there paralysed, hand unmoving and her eyes looking at the area where the butterfly had just occupied before. She was in disbelief. Hitsugaya had been severely injured? How? What was wrong with him?

Completely forgetting her reasons for not wanting to see him before, Momo flashed-stepped to the tenth division, reaching the hallway outside of the office within seconds. She ran down to the door of the office and hurriedly knocked on it when she reached it. "Rangiku-san, what's wrong with Shiro-chan?"

Her voice sounded panicked, but in truth, she was more worried than panicked. What could have possible happened to him?

The door slid open, and a worried Rangiku was there to greet her. "Come in, Hina-chan."

Rangiku led the way to the couch that had its back facing them. Rangiku's eyes saddened as she laid sight on Momo's reaction. The fifth division lieutenant looked in shock at the state of tenth division captain.

Hitsugaya lay unconscious on the couch, a thin blanket over him and bandage wrapped tightly around his head. Nearby the girl saw a bowl of water with a wet cloth the colour of blood. The sight made her shiver, her feelings becoming more of fear of what the damage was. Rangiku was quick to pick up the bowl and cloth and place them in the room next door.

Momo knelt down in front of the unconscious boy, just in front of his head. She felt tears sting her eyes that were currently trained on Hitsugaya's unusually pale face. His permanent frown was gone; his eyebrows were raised up high on his forehead. There was a small cut on his lip and another that went through his white eyebrow and ended at the side of his widow's peak.

"Shiro-chan…" the girl whispered sadly.

Rangiku came back into the room, smiling sadly at the scene in front of her. Momo looked at the strawberry blonde lieutenant, urgently wanting to know what had happened. "Rangiku-san, what happened?"

The woman sat down on the arm of the couch next to her captain's head, careful not to bump him. "I found him in an alley way between the third division buildings," she said "When I found him, he had a deep gash in his head."

She then ran a long finger of her own head to show the worried girl where the gash was. Her finger started at the left side near the front and trailed behind, at which point she turned her head so Momo could see. "It was a bad one," she said as her finger finished near her right ear. "I didn't have time to get him to the fourth division, so I carried him here with Kira's help.

"Unohana-taicho came after Kira went and got her. She said it may be too risky to move him to the fourth division, so he should stay here…She used kido to heal up the wound, it's left only a minor scar. However, he's gone into a coma-like state. Unohana said if doesn't wake up in the next few days, he'll have to be moved to the fourth division, but for now…all we can do is wait."

Momo took all of this in. She sighed quietly and looked back to the injured captain. Her expression became pained. Why did they have to fight yesterday, of all days? If she had known he would have been injured she wouldn't have caused such a hassle for him. But…was she the cause of this? What happened after she ran away from him? "R-Rangiku-san?"

The said woman looked back to Momo with a small smile. "Yes, Hina-chan?"

That was one thing Momo admired about Rangiku. Even when a situation this serious was occurring, she was still positive in some way. She would smile, even a little bit, and try to lift up the spirits of those around her.

"Do you know how he got this injury?"

Rangiku scratched the back of her head, her eyes wondering to the window in uncertainty. "I don't really know, but I can take a guess. Taicho went after you when you left" – at this she noticed Momo's change of expression from one of pain to astonishment –"and I didn't stop him. When I found him this morning I noticed there were crushed roof tiles around him. My guess is that he got distracted and tripped on the roof. How he got the cut…I can only guess that his head hit a banister from one of the higher stories, or one of the roof tiles cut him."

Rangiku stopped when she heard the girl begin to breathe shallowly. More tears were bubbling in her chocolate coloured eyes, and her head was bowed down in shame and regret.

So it was because of her. If she hadn't been so stupid and ran away none of this would have happened. 'I'm…I hate this! I'm really sorry, Shiro-chan!'

Something warm and soft gripped her shoulder as a compassionate gesture. She looked to the hand that lay there, and then to its owner.

"Hey, don't stress," Rangiku said with a comforting smile "Taicho is a strong person. He'll heal up in no time. I know he'll wake up to, why wouldn't he?" 'He's got you to take care of' she mentally added.

Momo shook her head. "I-I-It's not t-that…"

"And don't blame yourself. It wasn't your fault. Taicho chose to go after you. If he hadn't, I would have given him the talk of his life!"

Momo giggled at the last statement, knowing Rangiku intended it to be a joke. Rangiku continued. "And you know what I'm gonna do when he wakes up? I'm gonna make him do allll of my paperwork and scold him!"

"Eh, don't do that, Rangiku-san!" Momo exclaimed in worry. "Shiro-chan mightn't be up to that as soon as he wakes up! He might be dizzy, or sick, or he might even-"

She was interrupted by a small groan. Both girls looked to source of the groan in confusion. He turned his head, away from both of them. His voice muttered something, but neither heard what it was.

Was he waking up?

"Shiro-chan, can you hear me?" Momo realised her mistake and quickly correct herself. "I-I mean…Hitsugaya-taicho!"

He didn't open his eyes, but again groaned.

Then…he was still.

He didn't move.

Rangiku and Momo stayed absolutely still, waiting in case he moved again. After a few long moments, they gave up, relaxing their frozen stances. They both knew this could take a long time. They both knew he would wake up, but it was hard to predict when.

---

Days went by, and not once had Momo left Hitsugaya's unconscious side. Sometimes the boy had stayed with her while she was in the fourth division, and now, she was going to do the same for him. Rangiku had insisted she go back to her own barracks to get a proper night's sleep, but Momo was stubborn and stayed put next to her childhood friend.

However…it wasn't long until they both heard another response.

"R-Rangiku-san, I think he's waking up!" Momo called out to the working lieutenant. Rangiku stood up from her desk, dropping the brush she was writing with in the process. She rushed over to the couch, leaping on to the arm of the furniture and perching herself there on her knees. "Taicho? Taicho, are you awake?"

He stirred; moving his head from side to side with a grumbling sound coming from his throat. Momo stood up and moved away. Maybe he wouldn't want to see her first thing when he got up.

She felt so strange though. She knew now he had come running after her. Surely that meant something…

His eyes cracked open.

Rangiku laughed in joy. "Taichooooo! You're back!"

Momo grinned happily. He was finally awake!

He fully opened his eyes.

He made a confused sound.

"W…What are-?"

His hoarse voice was smothered by Rangiku, who had jumped off the arm of the couch and was now tightly hugging her captain to her chest. "Taicho, you don't know how happy I am that you're awake! Now I can go drinking again! My gosh, how I have missed sake so much!"

"R-Rangiku-san, you're suffocating him!" Momo said reaching out to the struggling and scrambling Hitsugaya.

Rangiku let go of him, realizing she was choking the poor boy to death. He coughed and looked back to the woman how had cut off his oxygen for those precious seconds. He looked at her in…fear? Not anger or annoyance like always did?

"Waaaah, big boob lady!"

Both women froze. The awkward silence that filled the air was destroyed seconds after it had been created by the white haired boy when he wailed. They stared at him as if he were some freak of nature.

'What did…he just call me?' Rangiku's mind exclaimed. 'When did I last clean my ears out?'

Momo thought she hadn't been sleeping in a while, so she must have been hearing things. There was no way her Shiro-chan just called Rangiku…

And then, something happen that neither of the shocked women thought would ever happen. It was something that was both scarring and unbelievable.

Hitsugaya, captain of the tenth division, the child prodigy, and the boy who wielded one of most powerful zanpukto's…turned to Momo, crying like was a baby and wailed "Hina-chaaaaaaaan!"

The unexpected hug caused Momo to fall to the ground. Her childhood friend cried into her black uniform and sniffed as he clutched on to her tightly. In seconds a wet patch of tears and snot had formed in her uniform. "H-H-Hitsugaya-kun?" came Momo's startled voice.

"The big boob lady scared me! She tried to kill me! Go away big boob lady!"

The expression on Rangiku would have been priceless if it weren't for the seriousness of the situation. She was horrified. No, scratch that…She was disturbed and mortified. "T-Taicho?

"What? That's not my name!" Hitsugaya stood up from the fallen Momo, a determined expression crossing over his featured. He wiped away the snot and tears from his face and pointed a thumb at his chest. "My name is Hitsugaya Toshiro! And you, big boob lady, should go away!"

Momo stood up, almost too shocked to speak and barely managing to do so. "Hitsugaya-kun…what are you saying? Don't you recognize Rangiku-san?"

He shook his head and got closer to Momo. "Hina-chan…c-can we get away from here? I-I don't want her to come over here again…"

Rangiku looked to Momo, who was looking back at her friend. "I think we need Unohana-taicho…" they said in unison.

---

They waited outside of the room. It was hours later until Unohana emerged. "Good morning, Rangiku-fukutaicho, and Hinamori-fukutaicho," she greeted with a head bow.

"Unohana-taicho," both women greeted bowed.

Rangiku was the first to speak up "What's the wrong with taicho?"

Unohana smiled and let a small laugh go past her lips. "It appears that…he has reverted back to his childhood. We did some tests on him, and from what I can tell so far, he is at the mental age of six or seven in human years."

Momo and Rangiku's eyes widened. They tried to take in what the fourth division captain had just said and they both exclaimed in unison "What?"

"How's this possible?" Momo further exclaimed.

"His injury," Unohana explained "If he had hit the banister his head and spine might have gone into shock. This would have caused some damage in the brain depending on how fast and how hard he hit the banister. There have been such cases in the human world, where fully grown adults have reverted back to their childhood due a head injury.

"Sadly, there is nothing I can do for him. Using kido on the brain is a delicate process, and there is no physical damage to repair. As far as my prediction go, I would say that this is only a temporary phase and that he will eventually go back to his current age."

Momo felt as though she were going to faint. The irony of the whole situation was staggering. Here she was, absorbing the fact her childhood friend had gone back to his childhood, and it was only yesterday that he told her he was no longer and child. Her head felt dizzy…

"What…What do we do in the meantime?" Rangiku eventually asked.

Unohana went into thought for a moment before replying "I have already notified the thirteen Gotei about Hitsugaya-taicho's condition. I have instructed them to not say a word to Hitsugaya-taicho about his accident and to be patient, he will soon come back to his correct mental age. Besides, this might help him to develop his character and learn new things about himself." With that the smiling taicho turned and opened the door from which she had previously walked through. She popped her head into the room "You can come out now, Hitsugaya-kun."

"Finally!" The boy bounced out of the room, no longer dressed in his haori and shinigami uniform, but in a simple, pale blue, knee length yukuta. His eyes were beaming around him in curiosity and wondering. The turquoise found the familiar brown. He grinned and ran to the girl who the eyes belonged to. "Hina-chan!"

She giggled as he came and hugged her around the waist. Rangiku smiled and laughed at the scene. "I'll leave you to it, Hina-chan."

"B-But R-Rangiku-s-!"

"I don't think he likes me too much…"

With that said, Rangiku received a childish glare from the white haired boy. He poked his tongue out at her, which to her was unbelievably adorable. She nearly squealed, but was quick to flash-step away before she could.

However, Momo took it the wrong way. "Shiro-chan, now look what you did, you made Rangiku-san upset!"

He pulled back from Momo and crossed his arms. "She's mean!"

"No she isn't! Rangiku-san is actually very nice. She just has an…extreme way of showing affection!" She then remembered her current location. Fourth division, quietness was expected, and quietness was something she wasn't giving. She looked to Unohana and apologetically bowed. "M-My apologises, Unohana-taicho. Thank you for everything, we'll be going now…"

Unohana smiled. "Let me know if anything else happens. Good day, Hinamori-fukutaicho."

As soon as the two exited the fourth division, Hitsugaya's eyes widened in wonder. He looked all around him. "What's this place?"

"This is the fourth division, Hitsugaya-kun," Momo exaplined with a smile. "All the sick and, eh…hurt people come here to get, um…band aids!" She didn't want to appear like she was patranizing him, but she didn't want to confuse him either. She didn't know anything about Hitsugaya when he was six years old. Was he as intelligent back then as he was yesterday? What did he like? What kind of…child could he have been? Was he always this curious and cheerful?

"Why are you calling me 'Hitsugaya-kun'?"

Momo frowned. "Because that's your name, Hitsugaya-kun."

Toshiro frowned, looking like his older self again. "No, don't call me that, I don't like it!" To emphasis the point he poked his tongue out and pointed his finger to it and made a foul expression, as if he'd eaten something sour.

"Oh, um…Sorry Hitsu—Ah, um, eh, Shiro-chan!"

Wait, would he mind the nickname? His older self hated it, loathed it.

The boy turned to her, smiling and clapped his hands once. "There! That one! Call me that!"

Momo smiled brightly. Finally, she could call him his nickname and not have 'It's Hitsugaya-taicho!' or 'That's Hitsugaya-taicho to you, bed-wetter!' afterwards. She looked back to Hitsugaya, catching up to him when she noticed he was standing in the middle of the courtyard. "You might want to stay close, Shiro-chan! It's very easy to get lost in this place."

"How big is it?"

"So big that by the time get to the other side it's, um…it'll take a whole day to get to other side!" She didn't know where any of this was coming from, but her mood had evidently lifted. Somehow, talking to younger Shiro-chan was fun.

At her exaggerated explanation, Hitsugaya turned to her with a wide grin. "I wanna see this place! All of it!"

Momo was happy to do so. "I guess we could go around the Seireitei. That's the name of this place, the Seireitei, and it's part of larger place called the Soul Society. It has…" She continued to explain the Seireitei to the keen boy as they walked around. When they reached the divisions, some of the members waved to them, and some winked at her, showing they knew what was happening and why the 'former' tenth division captain looked as though he was in a massive, fancy palace. She explained the duties of the divisions, and they went to go meet the captains.

A few captains and lieutenants were willing to say hello and welcomed them in – namely Shunsui, Sajin, Hisagi and the captain-commander - but some were either too busy – Byuakuya, Renji and Kira - or they hated children – namely Mayuri, Soi Feng, and Kenpachi.

However, when it came to Yachiru in the eleventh division, it was something Momo never saw coming.

"Hey Whitey!"

"You…You have pink hair! That's so cool!"

Yachiru blinked a few times. Momo guessed Yachiru was in more disbelief than she was. She smiled though as Yachiru jumped off Kenpachi's shoulder. Kenpachi just shook his, rolled his eye and walked off. "Need a damn good fight…"

"Yeah, I know! You're acting weird, Whitey…"

"Huh? What?"

Momo made signals to Yachiru to stop talking. She made an invisible zip over her mouth, 'slit' he throat with her thumb and shook her head.

Yachiru frowned at her. "Why are you making those weird faces, peach-peach?"

Hitsugaya turned around, and Momo was quick to stop. Sadly, her anxiety showed as she spoke "What are you talking about, Yachiru-san? I have no idea what you mean-!"

"Whatever you say! Can me and Whitey go play?"

Momo hesitated in her response. She saw the sudden keen look in Hitsugaya's eyes. "Sorry, Yahciru-san," she replied "I can't allow it if there isn't anyone watching you…"

"Why would we need someone to watch us? But if you're that worried, Kenny can watch us!"

Before Momo could respond to her, Yachiru grabbed Hitsugaya by the sleeve and dragged him off. "Okay peach-peach, thank a lot, bye bye!"

And both of them were gone in a flash. Momo was frozen in nervousness. 'If Zaraki-taicho is watching over them, will they be okay?' she thought. A sudden image flashed in her head, in which Toshiro was under the glaring, deadly gaze of the eleventh division captain who also had his zanpukto raise above his head, ready to cut the poor boy in two! 'If Shiro-chan does anything wrong, Zaraki-taicho might kill him! What if…No, wait, maybe I'm over thinking this. Surely Zaraki-taicho knows about Shiro-chan's condition, so he knows that Shiro-chan doesn't mean any harm. Then again, Zaraki-taicho isn't really...the type of person to think first. He attacks first and asks questions later, if he even asks any questions at all…

'But it's Yachiru. Surely, despite her childish antics she knows deep down what is right and wrong. Also, Zaraki-taicho would protect her if she were in danger, and she means a great deal to him, even if he doesn't say or show it. I think…I think Shiro-chan will be okay…' Concluding that she wasn't going to run after them, Momo left the eleventh division still a bit indecisive.

---

Hours had passed and Momo was starting to get worried. She was in her office, finishing some of the paperwork she had to do. The setting sun light passed through the half opened door. The beams of light lit up her paperwork and desk in an orange glow. There were birds chirping outside, flying back to their nests and homes. A small, cool breeze blew through the office, pressing itself against her warm skin.

To her, it would have been a peaceful, ambient time, if she weren't so worried about Hitsugaya. She dropped her brush into the bottle of ink and sighed. This whole day had been confusing, shocking and overwhelming. She realised how tired she was, how much had happened today.

Hitsugaya was a child again. This is something that she, deep down, was very conflicted about. She loved the idea of Hitsugaya being a child again. At the same time though…she liked the older Hitsugaya. The younger one was certainly more cheerful and oblivious to the rules, but he was hard to look after. The older one was more serious, cold and mature, but he knew her better and he could take care of himself.

'It's not that I don't like looking after Shiro-chan,' she thought 'It's just…maybe if he could take care of himself, I wouldn't be so tired. I never knew Shiro-chan was this energetic when he younger…'

Her eyes widened in realisation. How could she have only noticed this just now? She met Hitsugaya when he was around twelve, in human years, and now he had the mental age of a six years old… He didn't recognise anyone else in the Seireitei, so how did he know her? Then again, Unohana never said he was reliving his childhood, did she? It seemed like he was at some points, but maybe he's just acting his age.

"Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiina-chaaaaaaan!"

The wail made her jump and yelp. She quickly stood up and followed the direction of the wail, knowing whose voice it was. "Shiro-chan?"

She ran down the steps and stopped on the bottom floor of the barracks. He stood there, sobbing with tears running down his face and snot dripping from his nose. Other members of her division were laughing, confused or frustrated and yelling at him to stop. One them was even had a camera and was about to take a picture!

Thankfully, Momo stepped in before they could and scolded them trying to do so. She took hold of Hitsugaya's arm and dragged him to her office, with everyone from the fifth division looking on. It was embarrassing for her, even though she didn't want it to be.

When they reached her office, Hitsugaya had calmed down considerably, now only quietly sniffing and whipping the snot from his nose. She closed the door to her office and sighed in exhaustion. She walked away from the young boy, turning to him when she nearly at her desk and trying to look like she was angry. "You shouldn't act like that in a public area, Shiro-chan! It can cause some trouble for some people…"

She trailed off as he looked up her with those tear filled, wide, turquoise eyes. His expression showed guilt and sadness. Her heart ached at the sight and her eyes softened.

"D-Does…H-H-Hina-c-chan…hate m-me?" he asked with a few hiccups.

At that, Momo's feelings plunged into regret and empathy. She rushed to the boy and cautiously knelt down so she was now looking up at him. "No, Shiro-chan! No…I could never hate you, Shiro-chan. I'm sorry…What happened with Yachiru-san?"

He used his sleeve to wipe away the last of the tears trickling down his face. "Y-Yachi-c-c-chan and Shiro-chan" – 'He's referring to himself in third person?' she thought when she heard this – "were p-playing outside…Then the b-big, s-s-scary bell man came out of n-no where! He was really mad a-at me for s-some reason. Yachi-chan said something a-about him f-fighting. He was going to kill me! I-I ran away…"

'Bell man? He must be referring to Zaraki-taicho,' Momo thought sadly 'I knew I shouldn't have left him. I'm sorry, Shiro-chan…I never meant for this to happen.'

"I-I'll have a talk with the, eh, bell man," she said reassuringly "But in the meantime, are you hungry? You must be, after all that running. I have something you might like…"

At this Toshiro nodded. She smiled, her saddened, concerned expression fading away. "Okay, let's go to the kitchen then."

With that she stood up and turned on her heel towards the door. Before she could go any further, something caught on to her sleeve. She stopped, confused.

She turned her head back. "Shiro-chan?"

The boy was looking up at her.

She saw what had caught her sleeve.

His hand tightly clung the black fabric, as if he were trying to anchor himself to the ground because he was floating away.

Her smile returned. "Come on, Shiro-chan, there's nothing to be afraid of. I'm not going anywhere."

With that, the two of them left her office for the kitchen. For the whole duration of the walk down there, Hitsugaya held onto her sleeve, and moved in close to her, almost hiding behind her. The sight was adorable, and anyone who passed them couldn't help but look.

They finally reached the kitchen, no one was in sight. She told Hitsugaya to wait outside while she got him something to eat. He insisted that he should come in.

"I wanna see what Hina-chan is making!" he cried.

"You'll see when I bring it out, Shiro-chan' she replied back with a wink.

He folded his arms in displeasure but waited outside. He paced around, deliberately stamping his feet so she could hear them. Why wasn't he allowed in? What exactly was she doing? His curiosity was too much. He looked to the close door, an idea forming in his head.

He snuck to the door, as if he were a burglar, and slowly slid the door a fraction. He looked inside, seeing Momo at a table with some…green? She had her back to him and was working quickly. He snickered at how clever he was to think of such an idea.

However, she turned around. He was quick to close the door and walk three paces away from the door. He crossed his arms again and put on an angry expression, which was sadly very unconvincing and childish.

Momo giggled at the sight when she opened the door. "Okay, Shiro-chan, here you go!"

Hitsugaya's eyes went wide at the bowl she carried in her hands. Watermelon! He raced up to her, forgetting his angry expression and giggling when he got the bowl from her. He sat down on ground and hungrily ate the watermelon.

Momo had gone to the trouble of cutting it all nicely, but her efforts were not wasted, despite the fact that he hadn't noticed. She came and sat next to him, leaning her back against the wall. "Eat slowly, Shiro-chan…"

He stopped and briefly looked at her. His hands were sticky and wet with watermelon, around his chewing mouth was a bright pink circle. He grinned at her, with the chunks of watermelon he had been chewing on poking through and around the gaps of his teeth. "Twank woo, Wiha-chan!"

'What did he just say?' she thought. "Chew with your mouth close, Shiro-chan, its polite manners when eating. Once you've finished, then you can talk."

Following her orders, the boy chewed on the watermelon pieces, then swallowed, before he turned back to her. "Thank you, Hina-chan! Hina-chan is kind, and pretty, and nice!"

She smiled brightly as he finished off the rest of the watermelon.

A thought that was distant but conscious in her mind was heard. 'Maybe having a younger Shiro-chan isn't so bad after all.'

---

"Hinamori! Tai-I mean, Shiro-chan!" Rangiku greeted at the door of the tenth division office.

Hitsugaya stood there looking at her with a glare. Momo nudged his arm with her elbow, giving him the signal. They'd been practicing this after he finished his watermelon yesterday. She wanted to make sure he did this; it would have been rude if he didn't. He sighed and looked up at Rangiku.

"I'm sorry, Rangiku-san," he said in a false, unenthusiastic voice. "I'm sorry for calling you a big boob lady and for being rude."

The strawberry blonde lieutenant was astonished by the apology, but inwardly, she thought it was incredibly cute, despite the fact he didn't mean it. He had a more childish tone to his voice since he became six years old again, giving him the cute quality even when he wasn't being childish. "You're forgiven," Rangiku said with a large grin. "Such a good mannered boy, Hina-chan is raising you up well." At that she winked to Momo, who blushed in discomfort but giggled.

"What do you need, Hina-chan?" Rangiku asked.

"Well…I need to go on a mission, but I don't want to leave Shiro-chan all by himself. Do you think you could take care of him while I'm gone?"

Rangiku pursed her lips. She had hoped to go for a bit of drinking today with the guys; she had been stuck at the desk for three days. In her non-medical, flamboyant, free-spirited opinion, that was unhealthy for her. If she didn't get a drink soon, who knows what she would be capable of!

But still…with Hitsugaya in this state, he was cute and the chances were that this would be the only time she would see him like this. For all she knew, he could turn back into his older self while he was with her. 'Better enjoy the time I have with this younger taicho while it still lasts.'

"Yeah, sure thing!" she said.

At that Hitsugaya grumbled under his breath. He desperately wanted to cling onto Momo, then that way she wouldn't go. After the scolding and warning she gave him though, about if he was rude to Rangiku, he wouldn't get any watermelon, he knew he shouldn't. He wondered away from the fifth division lieutenant to the sofas.

Momo bowed in gratefulness. "Thank you, Rangiku-san! I will repay you back somehow." Before she turned to leave. "Oh, and Rangiku-san, if he gets hungry there's some amanatto in my kitchen, and don't forget that-"

"Relax, Hina-chan!" Rangiku said waving her hand up and down. "I've dealt with kids before, I was one as well you know. Good luck on your mission!"

"Um, okay…Bye bye Shiro-chan, I'll b back soon! Please behave and remember what I told you!" With that, the girl flash stepped out of the office.

Toshiro looked at the spot where she had just been seconds ago. His eyes saddened when she didn't reappear again. He pouted and looked down at his feet. Not going unnoticed, the woman behind him slowly got up from her chair and walked up to the boy. "Hey, cheer up, Shiro-chan!"

He didn't turn to her as he angrily but quietly said "Don't call me Shiro-chan…"

Surprised, the lieutenant came to stand in front of him, giving him a puzzled look. "But I thought that's what you liked to be called."

"Only Hina-chan can call me that…" He avoided eye contact looking off to the side.

Rangiku smiled. This showed something that not even her captain at his older age would be willing to admit. It showed how much she meant to him. She bent forward, her hands on her knees and her face coming to the level of his. "Hina-chan is that special, huh?"

"She is," the boy said, still avoiding eye contact "I like Hina-chan very much. That's why…" - he looked to Rangiku with a stern gaze –"Hina-chan is the only person who can call me 'Shiro-chan'. She's very important; she gives me watermelon and amanatto. Hina-chan is the most kindest and prettiest girl ever!"

She felt dramatic tears leak out the sides of her eyes. A scrunched up smile stretched across her lips and her eyes shined. She grabbed the boy into a tight hug, making sure though that she wasn't going to suffocate him. "Aawww, Hitsu-chan, you're so ADORABLE!"

Hitsugaya was startled, but let the lieutenant hug him. She was warm, like Momo, but not like her at the same time. It wasn't the same warmth he knew and enjoyed…

Rangiku released him, still smiling. The older Hitsugaya would never have admitted how important Momo was to him, nor would he show it. The younger one was the opposite. He wanted the whole world to know how much she meant. He didn't want to let her go…

---

HOURS LATER

"Did you have fun with Rangiku-san?"

"I guess…but the candy man was more fun!"

"You mean Ukitake-taicho?"

"No, the candy man!"

'He definitely means Ukitake-taicho…'

Momo concentrated back on her work. She was dead tired and she would have fallen asleep on these papers if they weren't so important. Her writing was messy, some smudges at the ends of her characters. She sighed and looked back up to the boy in front of her.

He had told her his whole day, but she wasn't able to fully pay attention, hence why she asked him about his time with Rangiku just before.

Rangiku offered a few things Hitsugaya could do, none of which were appropriate for a six year old – in Momo's opinion. Just as the woman was about to give up, Ukitake came into the tenth division office, a small piece of candy in his hand.

As soon as Hitsugaya saw it, it was love at first sight. He asked Ukitake for more, like an eager kid – Rangiku described it as 'a dog and his master'. Rangiku said she couldn't help but feel relieved once Hitsugaya followed the older white haired captain out of the office back to the thirteenth division.

Ukitake kept Hitsugaya more occupied, having always dealt with a zanpukto that like a child and liked to play games. As soon as Hitsugaya saw the candy stash in the captain's office, he was literally like a boy in a candy store. His eyes grew wide, shining with a new found happiness – as Ukitake had described.

Momo came back from her mission hours later, and found the boy running around the thirteenth division on a high. Ukitake just sat there though, a cup of tea in his hand, acting as if there was nothing wrong. His two subordinates were panicking around him, trying to calm down the hyperactive Hitsugaya before he tore up the room. It was a sight Momo knew she was going to have remembered forever, because it probably wouldn't happen again.

They got back to her division just moments ago. The girl was displeased to see she still had paperwork to do, feeling a sense of tiredness and dread sweep over her. However, she knew these were important, so she got straight to them.

Because he got bored so easily, she gave Hitsugaya something challenging and calming to do.

Drawing.

He was still on his high though, swaying from side to side and beaming at the picture he was drawing. Momo had let him use her sketching pad and pencils. She realised after giving them to him that she hadn't done any sketching in a long time. She made a note to do so next time she was free.

So now here they were, her doing her work and him quietly drawing. Her eyes fell to the pieces of paper scattered all around him. They all had figures on them, some she could recognise, surprisingly. She had expected them to be childish and crudely drawn. No, they weren't. The faces were slightly childish, but everything else was quite refined. 'I guess being a child prodigy…you'd be good at everything.'

One drawing caught her attention. It was clearly a picture of Rangiku – she could tell by the orange hair and the overly big chest – who had fire breath coming out of her mouth and sharp teeth. Her thin arms were hugging, what looked to be, a dying Hitsugaya, judging from the cross shaped eyes he drew on himself and his tongue poking out.

She focused back on the papers, realising she had been looking at the boy and his drawings for too long.

"Hina-chan!"

Momo looked up tiredly at him. "Yes, Shiro-chan?"

She was surprised to see the boy shuffling around on the cushion he sat on. His cheeks were a tinge of red, blushing with a childish glow. His hands were behind his back, the pencil the once occupied his hand was now on the ground with the others. He slowly stood up and walked to her. As he did this, he said in a slightly quivering voice, "I-I…I want Hina-chan to have this."

He brought a hand out from his back and pushed out his arm to its full extent. He turned his head away in embarrassment. In his hand he clutched a piece of paper…

She gently took the piece of paper from him, her eyes scanning over it. The lines and shapes formed two people. She realised with a quiet gasp that it was her and him. Like the rest of them, the picture was drawn quite well for a six year old. The faces were childishly done, with the thick, red, curved line representing a smile on each figure, the long, curved, black line a nose and the eyes were shaped like an almond and a small disc in the middle of the each eye, coloured brown for her, and blue for him.

She felt small tears wanting to leak from the sides of her eyes, but she held them back. She felt a strangely motherly happiness, unlike her feelings for the older one. Yes, those feelings…they seemed so distant right now.

"Do…Do you like it, Hina-chan? You're making weird faces…" came the voice of the boy.

She focused back on the present, raising her head to look up from the drawing. Her eyes were soft, and a genuine, beaming smile stretched across her lips. "It's amazing, Shiro-chan…!"

At that, the boy's eyes widened and he beamed at her. "Really? You like?"

His excitement seemed to be catching, because for some reason now, Momo was excited too. "Yes, yes, I love it! Thank you so much!"

"Then I-I'll make you more pictures! More pictures for Hina-chan!" With that he raced away from the desk and back to the sketch book and pencils. He opened the cover of the sketch book and was about to tear the page out…

…until he saw him.

Up until now he had been taking pages from the back of the book, like Momo had told him to, but this time he went to the front. He frowned at the sketches that were drawn on the first few pages.

Who was this man?

He hadn't seen him anywhere around the Seireitei, had he?

Who was he?

"Um, Hina-chan…"

He waited for the girl to look up at him. "Who's this?" He held up the sketchbook for her to see. He didn't expect her reaction…

"N-No! Put that away! H-He's no one!"

"But if he's no one, then why did you draw him?"

"Shiro-chan, he's no one! P-Please give me that-!" She stumbled out of her chair towards the boy.

"Not until you tell me who he is!" He pulled the sketch book away, a glare narrowing his eyes at her. She stopped in her tracks, not wanting to hurt Hitsugaa and not able to get past that glare he was giving her. He rarely glared at her. He only did it if he was truly angry at her.

He turned to look at the page again, flipping to next. He was there, but a different time, a different pose. He flipped though the whole book, a majority of it filled with his image, sketched on to each page. He flipped through it again, and found a set of characters in the bottom right corner on the page with just the man's face. A portrait, but he wasn't interested in that. The name of the man was…

"…Sōsuke Aizen" he slowly pronounced aloud. "Aizen…"

A look of pain etched itself into Momo's face.

…A jolt ran through him.

There was…something familiar.

Hitsugaya was paralysed, dropping the book and started shaking. His eyes were wide, a look that suggested he had seen a ghost. To him, this man, now that he knew his name, was a ghost. But where was he? Where did he fit in this world to him? How did he know a man he's never seen before?

There was…something familiar. This feeling, in the back of his mind, something was trying to pull him away. Something was…trapped in the back of his head, wanting to escape. It wanted freedom, but something was holding it back…

He turned pale. His shaking lips uttered the name once more. "A…Aizen…"

"S-Shiro-chan!" he heard her scream.

Soundlessly and slowly…

…he fell forward.

Pain changed to horror on Momo's face as the boy's body fell without a sound on the floor. Shock ran through her veins and system, taking control of her actions. She rushed to the boy, shaking his shoulder "Shiro-chan! Shiro-chan, what's happening?"

He saw all this through half opened eyes and heard her muffled cries before he lost consciousness.

---

His lids were heavy.

His skin felt cold, but there something wrapped over him.

He felt empty headed, like he had never thought of anything once in his whole like.

This feeling…of emptiness.

He couldn't take it.

He opened his eyes, despite the weight they imposed on him. The clear vision of a ceiling greeted him. The emptiness in his head was filled with questions and wanting answers. 'When did I fall asleep?' he thought 'I thought I was drawing…'

"Shiro-chan!"

He turned to the door, finding a relief Momo standing there with a tray of food. She walked to his sitting figure with the tray and knelt down next to him. "Are you okay, Shiro-chan? Do you feel…alright?"

Her expression of worry was something Hitsugaya was pained to see. He blinked and nodded. "Yes…when did I fall asleep, Hina-chan?"

A strange look past over her face. She placed the tray on the ground carefully and looked back to him. "You mean…you don't remember?"

"Remember what?" he asked, confused.

"…Never mind, Shiro-chan, it's nothing." The smile returned, and she picked up a steaming bowl of miso soup from the tray. "Here, eat up, you must be hungry."

As if on cue, his stomach growled. The boy blushed and laughed, looking to his stomach. Momo giggled but still held out the soup for him to take. He took the soup and gulped it down greedily.

Momo took her own soup and began to eat. There was only the sound of Hitsugaya's loud slurping and drinking, but apart from that there was silence. This gave Momo time to collect her thoughts.

She was relieved that Hitsugaya was awake. He'd been unconscious for nearly a whole week. She would come in and check up on him, only to find him still with his eyes closed and his skin pale. She ate her breakfast by his side, keeping a watchful eye on him. She was disappointed whenever she came in the mornings with her breakfast for two, only to see that the boy she was hoping to share her breakfast with was still unconscious.

She saw him now, happily eating with his eyes wide with life and his skin coloured again, with no memory of falling unconscious…

She remembered panicking when he closed his dull eyes, but slowly calming herself down and going to find Unohana. Once she explained the situation to the fourth division captain, they both came back to the fifth division barracks and carried him to his quarters. Once they had settled him in his futon, Unohana turned to her and eased her concerns and worries.

' "He may have experienced a memory recollection," she remembered Unohana saying "The name was enough for him to remember a suppressed memory. Don't worry too much, it won't do him any harmful damage, but make sure that there is not too much stimulus to trigger his memory, it might become too much for him. However, he may also wake up as his former self, depending on the intensity of the memory."'

She sighed at the remembrance of her words. This didn't go unnoticed by Hitsugaya and he finished off the soup.

"Hina-chan, why do you look so sad?"

Momo looked to Hitsugaya, the look of sadness not disappearing. She felt guilty, so guilty. She felt guilty for keeping all of this from him. It made her heart ache, the thought that she was lying to him. He still had those memories, somewhere, locked up in his mind.

The girl felt dread sink into her system along with the guilt. She desperately wanted to tell him the truth, but what would happen to him? Would his mind be beyond repair if she were to inflict him with so many memories? She bowed her head in defeat. She couldn't decide…

"It's nothing, Shiro-chan…" she quietly responded.

The boy didn't believe her. He looked at her in confusion. She saw this from the corner of her eye but ignored him. She felt like she should leave; let him eat the rest of his breakfast. She had work to do as it was, and that couldn't wait for long.

"I'll be seeing you, Shiro-ch-"

She stopped. Something warm and soft was pressed against her cheek. Her breath escaped her as she realised what it was. It remained pressed against her cheek for a few seconds before it withdrew as quickly as it had come. Her cheeks were aflame with a bright red-pink colour. She looked back to the boy in embarrassment.

'He just…kissed my cheek!'

"Shiro-chan?"

The boy looked up in honest confusion. "I thought that would make you feel better. Wait, maybe I didn't do it right!" With that he leaned forward again and pressed his lips to her cheek. Her cheeks blushed even brighter, looking like traffic lights. "No, Shiro-chan, it's not-!"

"Wait, maybe if I do it more than once!" And with that, the boy leapt on top of her and started kissing her face. Momo tried to pry the boy off of her, who was kissing all over her face. Not only was this embarrassing, it was ticklish! And…she was somewhat star struck. Never in her life did she think Hitsugaya would kiss her on the cheek, let alone her whole face!

She laughed and yelped trying to remove Hitsugaya off of her, but was failing. This situation couldn't get any-

"Hina-chan, how is taich…?"

…worse.

The boy stopped seeing the presence at the door. He turned his head towards the door. Momo looked to the door as well, her heart rate quickened and now her whole face was blushing the same colour as a tomato. She was too shocked and mortified to push the boy from his current position.

There, standing at the doorway, was Rangiku…but not just her, but Hisagi, Kira, Renji and Isane. Their eyes were wide as they saw the current situation of the childhood friends. Hitsugaya was on top of Hinamori, his lips dangerously close to hers, his robes loosely done up. Hinamori had one hand pressed against his chest and another on his arm.

This looked incredibly wrong…

Ignorant to their looks of shock and disturbance, Hitsugaya got off Hinamori, stood up and rushed to Rangiku. "I didn't what you told me, but it doesn't work!"

'"You know what you can do when Hina-chan is looking down? Give her a kiss on the cheek and she'll feel better. A lot better!"' He remembered her instructing him with a wink.

Momo looked Rangiku, who looked as though she had no idea what the jumping, giddy boy was talking about. However, Momo wasn't convinced. She could imagine Rangiku telling Hitsugaya to do something like this. "Rangiku-san!"

"I have no idea what he's talking about!" Her voice gave it away, her tone trying to sound confused but failing. The lieutenants behind her had different reactions. Renji and Hisagi laughed but tried to hold it in. Not only did they have some blackmail against Rangiku, but Hitsugaya as well…not that they'd end up using it, unless they wanted to freeze to death…

Kira was blushing at the idea that Rangiku had told Hitsugaya to do that… or so he thought. Isane was also blushing but had no idea why.

She walked past the strawberry blonde lieutenant and turned to the boy in front of her. "It's, um…good to see that you're up and about Hitsugaya-kun."

"Purple-chan!" he called out her nickname. He then noticed the other grownups behind Rangiku. He looked past both of the women to the others. "What are you doing here pineapple-head, scar face and droopy eyes?"

Momo was amazed by the nicknames he had given them. It was much like Yachiru's way of giving nicknames. It was kind of cute…

The men each gave off an annoyed sigh, and quickly turned away from the scene and went down the hallway.

"We'll be waiting for ya, Rangiku!" Renji called over his shoulder.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Just before turning and running down the hallway, she nervously smiled at Momo and said "I'll explain later, Hina-chan! Have a good day with Hitsu-chan , I'll come see you tomorrow!"

Momo was a bit angry at Rangiku, but she flustered more than anything. This was the most embarrassing moment of her life!

"What are you still doing here, purple-chan?"

Momo focused back on reality and looked to Isane. She stood up, smoothing her uniform and clearing her throat. "Are you here to see how Shiro-chan is doing, Isane-san?"

"Yes, Hinamori-fukutaicho," she said with a smile. "I hope you don't mind, it'll only take a fifteen minutes at most. I wasn't expecting him to be awake, but it's good to see, you are." At the last part she turned to the boy and continued "Is it okay if I take you back to the fourth division to se Unohana-taicho?"

Hitsugaya turned to Momo uncertain. The girl smiled reassuringly and nodded. "It's only a check up, Shiro-chan."

"Why do I need a check up?"

Both of them realised their mistake. They had talked about a check and medical things when they were suppose to make sure Hitsugaya didn't know there was something wrong with him.

"Because you…may have a fever!" Isane was quick to answer. She didn't want to lie but it was only thing she could think up of on the spot. "When you fell asleep, Hinamori-fukutaicho was very concerned because she thought you had a high temperature, a-and she came and got Unohana-taicho! Yes, that's right, isn't it Hinamori-fukutaicho?"

Momo went along with the story, trying to put on a convincing performs to match Isane's. "Yes, I was very worried, Shiro-chan, so you better go with Isane-fukutaicho for your check up!"

"Yes, right this way, Hitsugaya-kun!" She stepped out of the way for the boy to exit his room. He turned to Momo one last time. "Will you come for me, Hina-chan?"

She nodded and giggled. "Of course, Shiro-chan…"

With that the boy left the room. Isane also left but quickly turned her head back to Momo and mouthed "That was close!"

"Sorry" Momo mouthed back. Isane left the room, leaving Momo alone in Hitsugaya's room. She relaxed once she was sure no one was around and breathed out loudly.

This was definitely a morning she wasn't going to forget anytime soon…

After collecting the empty bowls putting them on the tray with the rest of the uneaten breakfast, the girl took the tray with her out of the bedroom. She went to the tenth division kitchens, eating what was supposed to be Hitsugaya's breakfast by herself. She cleaned up and went back to her own barracks.

She was much more calm with her emotions now, feeling a sense of contentment as the wind passed by her. The strands of hair that were untied lifted with the wind, her uniform flapped around her. She stopped, just outside the window of her office.

Peace…

Why did she feel so peaceful right now?

Her limbs felt weightless, as if something had been weighing them down this whole time. Her hear beat was slow steady, her head felt at ease with no thought burdening it. 'I wonder where this feeling came from. Is it because…I don't have to take care of Shiro-chan for the moment?'

She sighed, enjoying this feeling. Her calm eyes looked to the view to her right. Her body followed her eyes and turned in the direction towards the western Rukongai. From this far she could see people gathering around a large, bright red banner. At least eight men lifted the banner and handed it up to some other men who were waiting on the roofs of two buildings opposite each other.

'The festival is in a few days…' she thought as she looked at what else was being set up in the Rukongai 'It should be fun…with Shiro-chan. Although, it wasn't the younger Shiro-chan I was expecting to bring along, but still…it'll be fun.' She smiled sweetly, closing her eyes as she could see the whole night unfolding under her closed lids.

It would be beautiful.

A time of happiness, a time to forget secrets and feelings of guilt, something she wanted…

---

The days passed by rather quickly. It was about three days since Hitsugaya had woken up, and now it was the day of the festival.

She told the boy about the festival, an event that suddenly got him hyped up and caused him to jump and dance around the room.

"And they'll be watermelon there, right?" Hitsugaya asked eagerly.

"Yep, and games, and fireworks too!"

"Really? Can we go now?"

"It's not on until six tonight, Shiro-chan."

"What? But I wanna go now!"

To keep him occupied, Momo managed to get Yachiru to come over the fifth division barracks to play with the boy. She kept a watchful eye on them from outside the division window, having to give them restrictions because of what happened last time. Yachiru refused to stay within the fifth division courtyard, so Momo bribed her with her favourite candy. It seemed to work, surprisingly.

However, while they were playing in the courtyard, Momo wasn't just watching them, she was sketching out Hitsugaya. It had been a while since she had last sketched anyone, so her skills were a little rusty. To get a better look at him, she moved from her desk to the window, kneeling next to the sill and watching the scene outside.

She smiled in triumph as she managed to get his spiky, white hair drawn correctly, always the hardest part for her. What was different from her previous drawings was the fact she now adding a smile. She sketched a wide, beaming smile, and the happiest set of eyes she had ever seen on him.

His head was turned towards her, over his shoulder. His wide, excited eyes looked off to the side, towards where Yachiru would have been.

His clothes, which consisted of a white and dark blue, simple yukuta, were blowing the opposite direction of what his running, towards the left. One hand was at his side, curled into a loose fist, while the other charged forward, towards the direction he ran in. She didn't bother to draw his legs in, leaving the sketch at just above his thighs.

"What are you doing, Hina-chan?"

Momo jumped hearing the voice behind her. She turned her head over her shoulder. "Good afternoon, Rangiku-san."

"Hey, hey, no need to be so formal!" Rangiku came down and sat next to Momo, grinning as she saw the scene outside in the courtyard. "Taicho certainly looks happy. I'm surprised Yachiru hasn't gotten bored of him."

Momo frowned at the statement, and asked "What do you mean?"

"You know Yachiru, one minute she's chanting at the Woman's Association, and then the next minute she's building a pool in Byakuya-taicho's backyard."

Momo laughed, realising that it was true. "I guess she likes Shiro-chan…"

"Wait, what? In what way does she like him?" Rangiku exclaimed.

Momo realised her words, blushing as she turned to the shocked woman. "Eh, not in that way, Rangiku-san! I think it's just friendly, you know!"

"I sure hope you're right! Because he really likes…" Rangiku quickly stopped herself, whacking a hand over her mouth not trusting her owns lips, as if they had a mind of their own. 'What's wrong with me? I was about to tell her his true feelings! Whew, that was close…'

"Eh, Ran…giku-s-?"

"Oh wow, that's a really nice picture you've drawn there, Hinamori, mind if I have a look?" Rangiku quickly changed the topic, having removed her hand from her mouth. She practically snatched the picture off a confused Momo. Sweat had formed on her forehead, which she was quick to wipe away with her sleeve.

Her grey eyes looked to the picture, and widened when they saw who she had sketched out on the paper. "Its taicho…This is really good, Hina-chan!"

"D-Do you think so?" Momo asked, slightly embarrassed and curious at the same time.

"Yeah, it's really good! Keep going, I want to see it when it's done!" Rangiku handed the sketch back to a pink blushing Momo. She gently took it, getting back to sketching the finer details as soon as the book was in her lap again.

Rangiku remained silent as the girl sketched. Her eyes were on the boy and pink haired girl in the courtyard, running around in the courtyard, playing what looked to be a strange form of 'tag'. The scene seemed natural, like a scene from life. It was almost like he had always been like this. He'd always been like a child. Of course, that wasn't true. He acted like a child, but he was far more grown up in his appearance. He still looked like her captain…or did he?

"Are you coming tonight, Rangiku-san?"

The voice of the girl next to her brought her back to reality. She answered the girls question with an enthusiastic nod and said "Of course! I think Kira, Renji and Hisagi are coming too! It should be fun, right?"

Momo grinned. "Yes, I can't wait. I know that Shiro-chan is very excited…"

"Wait, what's the time? The suns nearly about to set."

Momo looked up, surprised to see that Rangiku was right. The sun was resting just above the hills. The sky had become a rainbow of oranges, yellows and reds, with some of once white clouds passing over above her head. She hadn't realised that the hours really had gone by so quickly. "I better get ready then. Shiro-chan might need some help too." She turned to Rangiku. "Would you like to meet up somewhere?"

"Sure! How about…in front of that place we went to for new years?"

"Which one?"

"The one opposite the place we went to for my birthday?"

"Eh, where, Rangiku-san?"

"How can you not remember? It's the place where they have the cutely shaped riceballs, and they have so many persimmons, and sake!"

"Wait, I know now. Okay, I'll see you there!"

Rangiku flash stepped out of the office, leaving Momo alone. Momo put away her sketch book and pencils back in her office draw. Next, she flash stepped out into the courtyard, ending the game the two were playing. Hitsugaya was bitterly disappointed, and Yachiru was only interested in the candy that Momo gave her. Momo practically dragged Hitsugaya back to the tenth division. He stilled cried out about wanting to finish the game he was playing with Yachiru, but calmed down after Momo told him about the festival.

"Let's see what you can wear."

Momo pulled open the doors of his closest, seeing folded up robes, kimonos and other clothes. Unlike his lieutenant, Hitsugaya wasn't that fussed about how he looked going to these sorts of events, so that gave Momo a very limited choice as to what he could wear. She laughed quietly as she realised a majority of his clothing was coloured blue, different shades of blue. There was some white and black, and even a shade or two of bright colours such as green. The girl shuffled through the articles of clothing, taking some out to look at them fully, only to fold them back up again or hang them up on a hanger.

Hitsugaya bounced around his room behind her, impatient. "When can we go to the festival?"

Momo finally found the perfect kimono. She gasped as she unfolded it. It's was a dark blue, almost like a light navy, and with a soft texture. Stitched into the dark blue was the large, extensive and detailed pattern of a teal coloured dragon. Each tiny scale of the dragon was like a work of art, so finely crafted and detailed. She was amazed that Hitsugaya had something like this in his closest, why did he ever wear this?

She turned back to the said boy and grinned. "Here, Shiro-chan! Put this on, and I'll come back in a few minute, okay?"

The boy took the kinagashi, examining it closely. "It looks weird."

"It won't once you have it on. I'll be back, Shiro-chan!"

And with that she flash-stepped out of his room, back to her own room. She already had her kimono laid out on her futon. She smiled at the beautiful kimono. She didn't want it to have a single crease in it, so she laid it out flat and with a single fold in it. She was fussy in that way, but it was such a beautiful kimono she didn't want to ruin it.

She undressed out of her uniform and carefully put on the kimono, almost as if she were afraid it would rip if she held or tugged it too tightly. One the silk fabric of the kimono was wrapped around her, she fastened and tied the pink obi around her midsection.

She looked over herself, very happy. Isane and Nanao were right, peach was her colour. She remembered the day she bought this kimono. What caught her attention wasn't the colour, the pattern that was been embroiled into the peach fabric. A few prints of flowers were dotted all over the kimono, all coloured a lighter shade of pink or peach. The colour strings of gold, white and pink threads formed the patterns of flowers, leaves and a plum tree, which was mostly seen on the back. The sleeves were long, reaching down to her knuckles.

She went to her cupboard, reaching to the highest shelf on her tippy toes. Her hand searched around for what she was looking for, finding it moments later and bringing it down. A hair stick, beautifully crafted into the shape of an array of flowers. Two chains were hanging off the end, one of them longer than the other. At the end of each chain was a pink gem that tangled gracefully and shined in the light. It had taken her three weeks worth of payment to buy this, but it was certainly worth it.

She placed the hair stick in her lap as she knelt down. Her hands came up to her bun and tugged the ribbon out of its bow. The hair cloth fell along with the rest of her raven black hair. She ran a hand through the silky strands, thinking about what she could do with it. Eventually she decided on a simple bun.

Once she was finished and stepped out of her room and made her way to the tenth division. Along the way she saw a lot of her division members and shinigami she knew stepping out into the dusk in kimonos, kinagashis and other formal wear.

She eventually got to Hitsugaya's room, about to knock on the door until it slid open. Rangiku stood there, startled to see Momo at the door. Momo's eyes widened at the sight of Rangiku. "R-Rangiku-san?"

It wasn't because of her sudden appearance, but because of what she was wearing. A long, elegant purple kimono with large floral pattern winding around the sleeves, and blooming on the side with what seemed to be thousands of chrysanthemums. Momo wasn't surprised to see that, like her uniform, she had the front part open and exposed, leaving her ample bosom revealed. He hair was done up in a fancy bun, looking almost similar to how Nanao did her up, and with two, long strawberry blonde bangs framing the side of her face. A hair stick was seen on the left side of her head, the stick fashioned into the shape of a large, blooming chrysanthemum.

Overall, Momo thought she looked like a elegant lady, a beauty, almost like a traditional princess. She stuttered out "Y-You look b-beautiful, Rangiku-san!"

Rangiku grinned, putting her hand on her hip as if posing. "Thank you Hina-chan! You look amazing, peach really is your colour."

The girl giggled. "Thank you very much." She looked behind the woman, remembering why she was here…and now curious as to why Rangiku was in Hitsugaya's room. "What are you doing here?"

Rangiku looked behind her, then back to Momo, saying "Oh, it was taicho, he came out not too long ago, but, well…he didn't do his kimono up quite right. I helped him a little, and I did his hair. He's right here. Come on out, Hitsu-chan!"

Momo heard small, slow steps coming towards the door. Rangiku stepped aside, her grin widened. "May I present Hitsu-chan!" she announced in a loud, dramatic voice.

Momo's eyes widened again, only this time they were the size of dinner plates.

Her lips parted and she gasped at the sight.

He stopped next to Rangiku.

He had a serious look on his face, closely resembling his older appearance. She had been right about the kimono; it suited him to a 'T'. His arms were folded and his hands were tucked into his sleeves, giving him a serious looking pose. His hair was gelled back, the spikes and single bang completely gone. He looked handsome and a lot older.

To Momo, he was an icy prince, like from the stories she heard growing up.

She blushed at the thought.

However, the image was completely shattered when Hitsugaya smiled widely at her and skipped to her. "Hina-chan!"

Now he was the younger Shiro-chan, and she felt somewhat ashamed she had thought him in a lovey-dovey way. She was also disappointed, but she hid that from her smiling and excited expression. "You look so handsome, Shiro-chan!"

"Yes I do!" Hitsugaya agreed, jumping once as if to emphases the fact. "Let's go, let's go!" He grabbed Momo and Rangiku's hands, running with them out of the tenth division. The two were astonished by his excitement, laughing as he pulled them out of the tenth division. When they reach the Rukongai, Rangiku took the lead and led them to the festival.

They were amazed by the sight of the festival. Colours surrounding them, smells of food and floral scents filled their nostrils and there were so many sights to behold. There were performances of dances and dramas, kites with paper, coloured lanterns hanging off them, lighting up the night sky, and many were participating in the games being held around the area. They wadded through crowds to formally dressed shinigamis and souls eventually reaching their desired location.

It wasn't as busy as Rangiku thought it would be, which only made her happier. Standing outside the restaurant was Renji, in a white kimono with a pink floral pattern, Rukia in an expensive looking dark purple kimono and a few hair clips pinning her black hair back, Kira in a light green kimono with a bamboo pattern covering one whole side, and Hisagi in a black and white kinagashi.

"What too you guys so long?" Renji asked.

"Hey, weren't that late!" Rangiku exclaimed with a frown.

"Let's just go and eat, I'm starving!" Rukia said and walked into the restaurant. The group followed her, finding a table in the corner with seven seats. It wasn't long before they were eating and drinking. More sake then necessary was ordered by Rangiku and Hisagi, much to Momo and Rukia's shock.

However, Momo was focusing more on Hitsugaya. He was so well mannered tonight, eating with his mouth closed and saying 'please' and 'thank you'. She smiled at the happiness she was experiencing right now. When it came to these events, Hitsugaya wouldn't join Rangiku and herself in this group. He would go off by himself and 'celebrate' – more like do paperwork. Momo would eventually go looking for him, and force him to stop work and celebrate with her.

Here he was though, with the others, appearing to have a good time, despite the fact he had no idea what they were talking about. The night wore on and eventually Rangiku, Hisagi, Renji and Kira were drunk, with Rukia just a little tipsy.

"And…And then I said to him, why the loooong face, buddaaaaah!"

Everyone except for Hitsugaya laughed at the catchline of Hisagi's joke. Rangiku's laughter was loudest. She was in hysterics, leaning on the table and pounded it with her fist. That was enough to make Momo laugh harder as well. She looked to Hitsugaya, wiping away a tear that had formed due to her laughter. He looked bored now, his head turned away from the group and gazing out into the scene outside of the restaurant.

'I should probably take him out of here; he looks like he really wants to go out there.' She thought.

"Erm, we'll be seeing you everyone. Shiro-chan and I are going to the spinning tops competition…"

Hitsugaya jumped out of his seat and ran out of the restaurant. "Come on, Hina-chan!"

"Eh, Shiro-chan wait!" She quickly ran out after the boy. Behind her she heard the yells and exclamations of her friends, some saying good bye, and some encouraging her.

Hitsugaya waited for her outside, much to her relief. She took his hand and they walked to where the spinning tops competition was being held. The boy asked what the game was, and Momo explained it to him. After explaining the rules, he joined in the game. He wasn't lucky on his first try; he was so frustrated that he had a mini temper tantrum and Momo had to calm him down. He tried again, with little bit more luck, and by his third attempt, he was competing with the other souls in the contest and beating some of them!

In the end he didn't win, but he came close. Seeing he was about to have another tantrum, Momo took him by the arms dragged him away.

He quickly forgot about the loss when he saw a kabuki performance. For next few hours they explored the festival. Momo was so caught up in all of the exhilaration of the moment that she forgot all of her troubles. She felt her heart flutter with glee and the wide grin on her face never left. This had been the happiest she been in a long time…

---

HOURS LATER

"He cheated, I know he did! He deliberately knocked the cone over!"

"It doesn't matter that much does it, Shiro-chan? There's always next year."

"But I wanna win now!" he cried out shaking his fists.

"If you keep this up you won't get any watermelon."

At that he instantly stopped, looking at her with wide, puppy eyes. "I-I'll be good, Hina-chan," he said, his voice airy and obviously happy "Where is the watermelon?"

She grinned and led the way to where there were stacks upon stacks of watermelons. The sight for the boy was like a god or goddess had appeared to him. He looked at the watermelon the whole time, tugging at Momo's sleeve as she was about to pay the stall owner. "Can we buy all of them, Hina-chan?"

Momo's eyes widened at the idea. She laughed afterwards realising how silly it was. "Buy all of them? I can't, I don't have enough money for that, Shiro-chan."

"But I want all of them!" he wailed.

She was quick to take the large watermelon she had purchased and lead the boy away from the scene he was creating. She stopped once they had gone around a corner and was outside an all too familiar place. Hitsugaya seemed to recognise it too. He looked from Momo to the house.

He took a small step forward and looked back at the girl, as if asking for permission. She answered by stepping toward the house. They both walked up the old, wooden steps, their weight creaking the stairs. Momo lightly knocked on the sliding door, and waited for the response of the occupant.

Her smile became a wide grin as the sight of the little, old woman greeted her. "Granny!" she and Hitsugaya said in unison.

"Oh my, I wasn't expecting to see you two," she said, clearly surprised by their appearance. "My, my, you've certainly grown a lot since I last saw you, Toshiro…"

"Granny!" He leapt to her and hugged her tightly. "It's you granny!"

"Oh, eh, Toshiro, aren't you energetic today!" She chuckled at the boy's zest. She was made aware by Momo about Hitsugaya's current condition. It had been during the time Hitsugaya had been unconscious that was made aware of this.

The old woman led them to the back veranda, where she had been sitting before their arrival. She went into the kitchen while the two childhood friends got settled on the veranda. Hitsugaya was fidgeting on the spot from all of the excitement of the festival. He had his hands on the large watermelon, rolling it on the spot to entertain himself while he waited for Granny to come back.

Momo just watched him, a strange feeling washing over her. Contentment? Peace? She wasn't sure…

"Alright, here we are." They both turned to the old woman who came walking out onto the veranda. She carefully knelt down and placed a tray in front of her. Three clay cups were on it, small strokes of steam rising from them. Green tea, her specialty.

Momo carefully cut the watermelon, and as soon as she was done, Hitsugaya grabbed the biggest chunk and chomped on it greedily. Momo took a smaller piece and handed to her granny, bowing her head as she did so. She wasn't particularly hungry, having already eaten at the restaurant from before.

She then took a cup from the tray and sipped some tea. The warm liquid soothed her and gave her a strange, radiant feeling. It made her heart slow down, her head was clear of all thoughts and her body felt light, weightless almost. She looked to the loudly eating boy, who was now on his third piece of watermelon. The smile on her face was that of genuine happiness. Her eyes softened with a sweet glimmer entering the chocolate brown.

She didn't want this moment with her, Granny and Toshiro to end.

It was like…they were back in the past again.

When they were younger, all of them, when there wasn't anything to worry about except for the price of food and the bullies around the corner. Those worries seemed so juvenile now compared to what her and the white haired boy had been through. What she had been through…

Crackling lurched her out of her thoughts. She looked to source of the crackle. A pink explosion of colour in the sky.

The fireworks.

"Shiro-chan, look!"

However, Hitsugaya was already looking at the night sky, his eyes wide with wonder and astonishment. More fireworks shot up into the sky, exploding in the sky. The coloured explosions lit up the sky and radiating over their skin in pink, red, white, gold, blue and green.

Soon the whole sky was filled with colours. The sights were mirrored in the eyes of Momo and Hitsugaya. She laughed in joy at the fireworks. "Isn't it amazing, Shiro-chan?"

Her happiness suddenly vanished.

Her eyes widened in distress.

"Shiro-chan?"

His eyes were wide in pain and shock, and he was pale looking in the coloured lights. His whole frame was shaking. Granny came over, placing a gentle hand on the boys shoulder. "Are you alright, Toshiro?"

His wide eyes darted between her and Momo, clearly distressed. "M-My head h-h-hurts…" His voice was a whimper, quiet and pained.

'Is he having another memory?' Momo thought, some fear entering her system. The girl could only think of one thing to do. "I'll take him home, granny. We'll be seeing you."

Understanding, the old woman led them to the door, waving to them as the two walked down the steps. Momo waved back quickly before turning her attention back to the pained boy. He had his head bowed and his hands clutched his hair tightly, undoing some of the gelled back spikes.

She lightly held his shoulders, in a small attempt to comfort him. "It's okay, Shiro-chan, we'll get you home soon."

"It's hurts…" he whimpered, gritting him teeth together.

She knew she had to get him home soon. If he fainted out here it would get awkward, and she wouldn't know how to carry him back to his room. She wouldn't be able to find Unohana, she was also out tonight here at the festival. She couldn't focus on that now; she had to focus on Hitsugaya. She led him through the crowds of people and through the alleyways. Eventually they came to an empty alleyway, where he seemed to slowly get better. He didn't clutch the sides of his head, but his head remained bowed down.

"Don't worry, we're almost there," Momo assured him, lightly patting his left shoulder and pulling him a little closer to her. The alleyway got darker as the treaded further into it, the lights of the festival slowly fading away. Ahead were the Seireitei gates, a structure that the girl was glad to see...

"Hey, what are you doin' 'ere?"

Momo stopped, making sure Toshiro stopped with her. She straightened as she realised the voice was addressing her. She slowly turned around, her eyes meeting a group of men with loose kimonos and kinagashi. She could tell that they were souls and not shinigamis, they barely had a reiatsu. A strange look gleamed in their eyes, a mixture between enjoyment and something she had never seen before.

One of them grinned and chuckled. "Why so scared, sweeeetie?" one of them cried out. He looked to be the leader of the group.

His voice was deep but he slurred on his words. Momo suddenly realised what was happening. She had to get Hitsugaya out of here before things got out of hand. "Ehh, good night, if you'll be excusing us." Her hands tightened on Hitsugaya, who was barely conscious of the situation. He looked at her in confusion and pain.

"No need to rush, cutie, we've got a lot of time," another one of the men said "Stay and chat a while. You can leave the boy on the corner there..."

"We really must be going!" She began to run, but something tugged her from behind. He hands left the boys shoulders and her feet left the ground. She heard the laughing and chuckling of the men as she struggled in one of their grasps. "Let me go!"

"Hina-chan!" Hitsugaya cried out desperately.

"Run, Shiro-chan! Run, get out of here!" Momo exclaimed. As she did so she managed to get her leg to kick the man behind in the leg, causing him to release her and wince in pain.

She stumbled forward to the shaking and scared Hitsugaya. She yelped as he caught her by the shoulder before she could fall over. There was a ripping sound. She stood up as she noticed that one of the men had had their foot on her kimono. There was a long tear that went from the hem to the sleeve.

That didn't matter though. Right now they were surrounded, and Momo knew she may have to use kido to get them away. She was banned from using it against souls, unless it was for self defence, and even then, it would come with consequences. She could deal with those later, but she knew now, she needed to get Hitsugaya away. "Stay back!"

She tried to raise her reiatsu, but the fear that quacked her being was suppressing it back. She wasn't scared for herself, but for Hitsugaya.

"Ya know, the kid looks kinda familiar!"

"Wasn't he that punk from the streets with that old oba-san?" As the leader said this, they walked in closer, almost making them press up against the wall.

"W-What are they talking about, H-H-Hina?"

Momo's heart was beating out of her chest, and sweat was running down her forehead.

It was no use.

She did the only thing she could do.

Something blocked Hitsugaya's path, covering his view of the approaching men.

He heard their footsteps stop and chuckles rise in the air.

"H-H-Hina-c-c-chan?"

"Stay away from him!" she yelled, making her voice strong.

The men all looked at each other. The leader responded first in a one word, slurred answer. "Whaaaaat?"

"Let him go! Then... you can deal with me! If you do anything to him I'll-!"

"Give it a rest!"

Suddenly her whole world was a blur.

Her left cheek burned painfully.

Her whole body collided with the ground in a loud 'thud'.

Her right side ached from the impact, pain exploding in her arm, leg and side of her face. She yelped as the pain became extreme. She tried to stand but slipped and attempted to get back up again. She only heard her heart beating in her ears and the laughter of the drunken men.

Her panicking eyes went straight to Hitsugaya, to make sure he was alright. Much to her relief he was alright, but the shock, fear and disturbance on his face made her wince. Tears were running down his face from his wide eyes. He bit on his lip, suppressing the sobs that wanted to take over him.

He opened his mouth, a strangled, choking scream erupting from his throat. His head came up to his head, and he nearly threw himself into the ground. He was in extricating pain.

"Let's get rid of the kid, and then we can have some fun..." they made advances on the boy; one of them had their fist raised.

Everything seemed to slow down.

Hitsugaya suddenly went quiet and his hands covered his face.

His breathing slowed.

A sheen coat of sweat formed on his face.

With all of her will power, Momo lunged up as far as she could. Her heart skipped a beat as the man's fist came towards the boy.

"HITSUGAYA-KUN!"

She landed behind him, against the wall. Before she could react, there was the sound of the punch colliding with flesh…

A loud 'smack'!

She dared to look…

…and he still stood.

Hitsugaya had the fist in his tight grip, catching it before it could hit him.

The man was clearly shocked, trying to pull away his hand. The boy let go and the man stumbled backwards into the group, causing them to all fall over under his weight.

From behind Momo couldn't see the boy's face as his head rose from its bow. She didn't see the scared expression was completely gone, replaced by a cold, angered face.

His eyes were ice and glaring at the men. She felt something cold encase her. She realised it was Hitsugaya's reaitsu. The men around them were suddenly frightened and scared, too afraid to get to their feet.

"What were you doing?"

The girl's eyes widened as she heard the voice that emerged from Hitsugaya. There was no childish tone, no fear. It was cold, steely and deadly serious…

His reaitsu increased, secretly telling the men to go before he'd kill them. As if understand the message he was conveying, the men scrambled to their feet gasping and yelping as they stumbled out of the dark alleyway, some exclaiming their terror of the boy.

Momo weakly smiled, feeling the effect his reaitsu was having on her. She was sweating from the strength of it, and slowly sliding down the wall to the ground

Hitsugaya turned around. "Hinamori!"

His reaitsu lowered to a less intense rate. She looked through half open eyes to him. "S-Shiro-cha-" She gasped as his reaitsu got too low. He fell forward, hitting the ground silently. She fell with him. She crawled to him, worry pulsing through her. "Shiro-chan!"

He was unconscious, a frown prominent on his face. His skin was pale and cold when she touched it. She was close to losing consciousness herself, what would she do?

"Hinamori!"

She looked down to the end of the alleyway. She breathed out in relief, her voice ragged and strained. The group rushed to her and the unconscious Hitsugaya.

"Hinamori! Taicho!" Rangiku called out as she reached them "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Hitsugaya-kun…h-he needs help! He went unconscious…"

As Renji and Kira rushed to the blonde woman's side, she noticed what Momo had called him. Not 'Shiro-chan', but 'Hitsugaya-kun'… Somehow, that troubled her. Was it because she had sensed her captain's spiritual pressure, knowing he wasn't capable of increasing it consciously?

"I'll take him back to the tenth division," Renji vouched, his arms coming under the unconscious boy's body. Rangiku looked to Renji, giving him a simple nod to confirm. He was gone with Hitsugaya in a flash step. Kira went with him, to check for any serious injures he could heal.

Hisagi kept watch in case anyone approached them. People who had become aware of the spiritual pressure of the tenth division captain were asked to move away by Hisagi. Rangiku helped a shaking Momo to her feet. "We felt taicho's spiritual pressure and follow it here. What happened?"

Momo looked to Hisagi, who now had his head turned towards her and Rangiku as if he were listening in as well. She looked past him to see that the crowds that had gathered at the entrance of the narrow alleyway were gone now, everyone resuming their business.

The girl looked back to Rangiku's concerned face, trying to give a smile to reassure her friend. It ended up coming out as a wobbly, nervous smile. "It's alright; we just…bumped into the wrong people. Hitsugaya-kun's head started to hurt and he felt a little sick , so I was taking him back to the Seireitei. However, there were a group of men that…approached us.

"I tried to use kido, but…I was slapped before I could, a-and then before I knew i-it…I felt Hitsugaya-kun's spiritual pressure. I-I think he may…be back to his old self again."

At the last part Rangiku gasped. Her wide eyes were disbelieving. "How do you know?"

"Because he…he didn't…he didn't look like a child anymore." It was the best Momo could describe, her mind was too shaken by the events that had just occurred to form any advanced descriptions in her head.

"So, does this mean he's regained his memories?" Hisagi asked quietly as he approached them.

Momo shook her head. "I-I don't know…I think so." As she said this, deep down, in the deepest reaches of her heart and mind, sadness encased her. Tears pricked her eyes, but it was for the wrong reason.

Not because she was happy that Hitsugaya might have his memories back.

Not because of what happened before.

Because he was gone.

Her little Shiro-chan was gone…

…and he wasn't coming back…

'Such a selfish reason,' she thought.

---

THREE DAYS LATER

She sighed again. She lost count of how many times she had sighed today. It was the same one. Same sound, same tone, same amount of time it dragged out for and for the same reason. She put the brush down, carefully placing it over the ink bottle.

She couldn't concentrate, no matter how many times she tried. Her paperwork was messy, compared to the ones she had completed a week ago when Hitsugaya was…

She sighed. Her eyes trailed to the desk draw. Her gaze softened as she remembered what was in this draw. 'I haven't seen it since the day I got it.'

Her hand took hold of the handle and pulled out the draw. Her face softened more as she laid her eyes on it.

The picture.

The same hand then took hold of the picture and brought it out into the open. She turned back to her desk, resting her elbows on the wood and looking down at the picture she held in her hand.

The memory came…

"Hina-chan!"

Momo looked up tiredly at him. "Yes, Shiro-chan?"

She was surprised to see the boy shuffling around on the cushion he sat on. His cheeks were a tinge of red, blushing with a childish glow. His hands were behind his back, the pencil the once occupied his hand was now on the ground with the others. He slowly stood up and walked to her. As he did this, he said in a slightly quivering voice, "I-I…I want Hina-chan to have this."

He brought a hand out from his back and pushed out his arm to its full extent. He turned his head away in embarrassment. In his hand he clutched a piece of paper…

She felt small tears wanting to leak from the sides of her eyes, but she held them back. She felt a strangely motherly happiness, unlike her feelings for the older one. Yes, those feelings…they seemed so distant right now.

"Do…Do you like it, Hina-chan? You're making weird faces…" came the voice of the boy.

She focused back on the present, raising her head to look up from the drawing. Her eyes were soft, and a genuine, beaming smile stretched across her lips. "It's amazing, Shiro-chan…!"

At that, the boy's eyes widened and he beamed at her. "Really? You like?"

His excitement seemed to be catching, because for some reason now, Momo was excited too. "Yes, yes, I love it! Thank you so much!"

"Then I-I'll make you more pictures! More pictures for Hina-chan!" With that he raced away from the desk and back to the sketch book and pencils.

She was about to sigh again, but her mouth became too tired of the action. Instead she whimpered. It seemed appropriate for her current mood. Her emotions were a mix of nostalgia and longing.

She hadn't seen Hitsugaya since the night of the festival.

He'd woken up, Rangiku had told her, but Momo was too scared to go.

She didn't understand her fear at first, but soon realised why she felt this way. It was the same feelings she had the night Hitsugaya hit his head. She was fearful that he would remember that night, the fight they had, and what he had said about her. She remembered, clear as the day it was yelled. Every word, every heart beat that was twisted by his words…

Yet, even so…

…she didn't want to leave things the way they were.

She couldn't out run him forever, nor could she be upset with him for so long.

She put the picture down on her desk, determination coursing through her system and wiping out the sadness she had been feeling.

Momo stood from her table and went to the tenth division at a leisurely jog. When she got there, she couldn't see Hitsugaya at his office desk through the window. There was no one inside much to her confusion. That meant he could only be in one other place, his quarters.

Before she knew it she was standing outside of his room. Her determination still remained, giving her the courage to knock on the door.

'I have to sort things out with him,' she thought 'But yet…I really hope he doesn't remember anything from before the accident. Wait…Didn't Rangiku-san say he doesn't-?'

"Come in!"

Momo's determination had fizzled, now leaving her a cowardly wreck. She could run now and live another day. No, she couldn't. She was already here, in front of his room door. Despite what she had just remembered right now, she knew she couldn't run away…

She slide the door open and stepped inside. "Hello…Hitsugaya-ku—I-I mean Hitsugaya-taicho…"

He had his back turned to her, his front facing towards a window. He had his arms folded and his feet close together. Momo closed the door behind her, waiting for him to respond.

"Where have you been?" he asked.

She expected him to sound agitated, annoyed, but it was the opposite. He was calm and collected. She eventually responded to him. "In my division, I had a lot of paperwork to do, you know how it is." She nervously laughs, scratching a hand behind her head.

"You don't have to make up stupid excuses, bed wetter," he said as he turned to her.

She wasn't just surprised by the nickname, but the fact he was frowning. His usually expression, the frown, the narrowed eyes, the overall seriousness…

However, his expression softened the slightest fraction when he saw her. His eyebrows become more of a straight line across his forehead instead of a frown.

Momo looked away from him, unable to show him her saddened expression. "I know that you…may not remember anything from before the accident, but I-"

"I do remember."

She looked at him with wide eyes. Her heart rate sped up. Her feet started to go numb and cold. "Y-You do?"

"I remember our argument," he said causally.

Momo clasped her hands to her chest as if it were a reflex to shock or sadness. In this case, it was sadness. "I see…then…what about-?"

"Forget about everything that happened," Hitsugaya interrupted "What happened after my incident, you should forget about it. I'm sorry for my actions and behaviour."

Shock ran deep in the girl. She couldn't move, and her heart skipped a beat. She shook her head. "What are you saying? I can't forget any of that! No, I refuse to let these memories go, Hitsugaya-kun! You may not be able to remember them but I will! You don't know how much I…I…enjoyed those times. Don't ask me to forget, please…"

Her vision blurred as small tears formed in the corner of her eyes. She held them back, trying to not let Toshiro see them. She bowed her head to him. "I-I'll be going now, Hitsugaya-taicho…" She turned to leave.

She was hoping he would stop her, but he did nothing. She reached the door, stopping to give him a chance. She didn't look back, presuming he was just staring at her. She pulled the door to the side.

"Do you still have those picture of him in your sketchbook?"

Her foot stopped mid air as he spoke. Her hand let go of the door. She didn't turn back to him but asked "What?"

His voice was cold as he spoke again. "That picture of Aizen, it's not the only one you have, is it? Do you have more than one?"

'How could he remember that? Has he seen the picture before? No, he couldn't have, I've never showed him, and he's not the type of person to go sneaking around.' Now she half turned back, looking at him from the corner of her eye. "How do you remember that?"

"That picture I gave you…was more or less repayment for the watermelon. And don't forget, you owe me some amanatto for the good behaviour I had when I apologized to Rangiku!"

At that she fully turned to him. She closed the door behind her again. He slowly walked towards her, recounting aloud most of the events that had happened, from after his injury up until he woke up as his 'present self' again. She was shocked, hardly believing anything she was hearing, like she had completely forgotten everything that had happened. 'Rangiku-san was wrong, he does remember! Before she had told me he didn't remember anything, but I'm here, right now, listening to him recounting what happened…I-I don't know how this is possible…'

"Then there were those bastards that…" he trailed off.

She looked to him in concern as his face darkened. He didn't look at her, his eyes full of shame. He looked to the ground, off towards the right. His fists were clenched tightly by his sides. Momo reached him in two steps. "Hitsugaya…taicho?"

"Where did he hit you?"

Hitsugaya turned his head up again. His eyes scanned every inch of her face, rapidly, urgently. She felt very awkward, giving up on trying to capture his eyes with her own and instead staring at the bridge of his nose. After a moment his eyes stilled, coming to look at hers. She looked into his, seeing shame but also…regret?

She didn't look down at his hesitating hand. "I didn't stop it from happening," he said quietly "I cried and screamed. I was scared. I didn't do anything to stop them…I was a coward."

Momo opened her mouth to speak, but a thought crossed her mind before she spoke. 'Was this why he wanted me to forget about everything?'

"You weren't a coward, Hitsugaya-kun," she said, not realising she had used 'kun' instead of 'taicho' "How could you have acted any differently? You were a child, you didn't know nor were you expected to know what to do. It was my duty to protect you, not the other way around. I managed to do that though, right?

"As it is…neither of us was seriously hurt. We should be grateful that we're alright, that nothing too serious happened. And, if it weren't for that incident, maybe you wouldn't have ever come back."

His frown returned t that last part. He closed eyes for a brief moment and sighed. It was a short sigh, the kind that she had been doing before she came here. His lips parted, and he spoke "Hinamori…"

His eyes opened and he leaned forward slightly, as if closely inspecting her eyes. She was too confused to lean away, curious to see what he would do. He stopped just centimetres before their noses would have touched. His eyes dodged to somewhere on her face. Was it her lips he was looking at? Before she could think any further he looked back into her eyes.

"Which do you like better?" he asked.

She didn't understand. "What do you mean?"

"Which do you like better? The younger Hitsugaya or me?"

Her eyes widened at the question. "Why do you want to answer a question like that? You say it as if you're two completely different people!"

His brows further creased into his features but he did not move. He could see that she was getting defensive about the question, but he incorrectly thought of the reason why. "Just tell me! Did you like the younger Hitsugaya, who's childish and embarrassing, or me? We're two completely different people, complete opposites…"

"But how can you be different from each other? You're the same person. Shiro-chan was you when you were younger! I know that you've grown up; you've really grown up a lot. When I left for the Shinigami Acadmey, and I came back to see you and Granny, I realised you had really grown up, and that did upset me, a little…but then again, you were growing up, you weren't really a child anymore. You may look like one, to some people, but you're older than you look. You certainly act a lot older than your appearance. I guess…we all grow out of our childishness at some stage."

An awkward silence hung over them, neither of them moving from the other. They just stared at each other, as if trying to find something that could be said through the eyes and not the voice. As if they didn't trust their voices and lips…

His expression softened. "You don't understand," he said, his voice soft. There was something in his expression that told her that what he was about to say was hard for him. "Hinamori, I stopped being a kid so you could see me as…as a man!"

Her heart skipped a beat.

A blush coloured Momo's cheeks, and Hitsugaya's as well, although his shade of pink was paler.

Her heart fluttered.

She knew her answer now, to that question. "Shiro-chan is kind, sweet and very fun to be with. Hitsugaya-taicho is calm, mature and understanding. I like you both equally, but…I feel differently about Hitsugaya-taicho."

His eyes became half hooded. "How do you feel?"

Had he leaned in closer? She could feel his breath wash over her face, it made her shiver. She spoke in a whisper. "It's more than…friendship. It's something that…makes my heart beat faster." 'Why can't I just come out and say it? I love him!' Even saying it in her head was hard.

His expression shifted to something of shock. Did he really understand her feelings? Was he thinking of something completely different from her?

He leaned away, the presence of his breath over her face already being missed the second it left. He half turned from her. In a quiet voice, gentle and soft, he said "I won't let that happen to you again. I'll be there next time, to stop them, should it even get to that stage."

Momo shook her head to knock herself out of her fazed state. "Eh, t-thank you, H-Hitsugaya-taich-"

"You don't have to keep calling 'Hitsugaya-taicho' bed wetter!"

"What? But you told me to-!"

"Call me that when they're people around! For now you can…" he looked back to her, the blush in his cheeks going from pink to red "You can call me 'Hitsugaya-kun' when only Rangiku is there, and S…" – he winced –"'Shiro-chan' can only be said when it's just you and me. Still, I wish you wouldn't call me that!"

The sweetest smile he had ever since graced her lips. "Okay, Shiro-chan!"

He grumbled under his breath, a hand going through and messing his hair. It became messy, with all sorts of spikes sticking up in different directions. Momo giggled at the sight, leaving Hitsugaya puzzled.

"Your hairs a mess, Shiro-chan," she said.

She stepped closer to him, her hand coming up to his hair. He went rigid when her hands touched his scalp. "B-Baka! What are you doing?"

"Hold still, I'm fixing your hair," Momo requested, her hands already at work. She moved the snow white hairs all over the place, trying to find the correct hairstyle. His hair was surprisingly silky, soft against her fingers. Her hands slowed down, taking in the texture of his hair.

Hitsugaya just stood there, powerless to the girls' touch.

An idea came to her. She was hesitant to act upon it, but then thought she could get away with it. She pushed some of the spikes back and brought some forward. She brushed more over the left side of his face, creating something like a fringe. She combed the rest back. Once she was satisfied with the result, she stepped back to see how it looked.

It was almost how she saw it in her head. "There, a new look, how about it?"

Hitsugaya looked at the strands of hair that came over his face. He tried to think of how she had done this new hairstyle, seeing as he didn't have a mirror nearby. He lightly touched his hair, feeling the way it had been combed back. Judging from the style and how it felt under his fingers, it felt…familiar.

How his hair looked like when he was a child.

"Fine, I'll see how this goes for a while, but don't expect me to keep it this way for long" he grumbled, crossing his arms.

The girl grinned. "Okay, Hitsugaya-kun."

Hitsugaya couldn't help but smile as well. This didn't surprise her, but it certainly made her happy. It rose up her spirits, made her feel more secure…

The last time she had felt this, deep inside, in the back of her mind, was when he…

"Hitsugaya-kun, there's something, I, eh, need, um…"

He frowned. "Hinamori, what are you-?"

He stopped, feeling something soft and warm press against his cheek.

His limbs suddenly went heavy.

He couldn't breathe for a few seconds.

She was…

She was kissing his cheek.

But it went sooner then it came.

She leaned away, smirking in mischievousness. This was both payback and repayment for the time he had kissed her on the cheek. It was also a 'thank you' for everything he had done for her as his younger self. Even though it didn't appear to be the way she wanted it to be, she had put in every emotion into that kiss.

Hitsugaya touched the area where she had kissed him. He opened and closed his mouth repeatedly. He was trying to say something but nothing came out.

Hitsugaya suddenly gritted his teeth together. He looked to the door in fury. His whole face was turning red. "I know you're there, Matsumoto!"

There was a muffled commotion outside of the door. There was tumbling and thudding and muffled cries. The door slowly opened, and a guilty Rangiku showed her face in the open space between the doorway and the door. "Oh, eh, taicho, I eh, um…how are you able to remember that? You told me you didn't remember anything! You lied to me! You're just as much at fault as I-"

"We'll be going now, Hitsugaya-taaaaaicho!" called out the others that had been there. He could guess that Hisagi, Kira and Yachiru were among them. Were those some of his own division members running away with them?

A vein popped out of the side of his head. "Give me one good reason why you made me do that!" He was referring to the kisses he had given Momo when he woke up after his first memory recollection. When he thought of that time, he became felt, humiliated and, deep down, euphoric.

"Aww, but taicho, you were a little kid, and I couldn't resist!" Rangiku defended "Besides, it do the trick, Hina-chan here felt a whole lot better afterwards. And, but the looks of it, it worked on you too!" Before she could even breathe she sprinted away from the doorway, knowing she had just practically signed her death warrant.

"MATSUMOTO!" he exclaimed. He ran to the door. Momo was sad to see him go. He stopped, as if sense her feelings. He turned around, looking calmer than before, but still angry. "Wait here, I'll be back!"

His voice contained fury, but she knew it wasn't directed at her. She was concerned for Rangiku's sake. "Go easy on Rangiku-san!"

He groaned and rolled his eyes. "Of course I'm not going to!" He turned around again. He stopped again. He stayed there for a moment, before he turned back to her. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his angered voice. "I-It wasn't the…moment in the alley that helped me come back."

Now it was her turn to frown. "What was?"

He hesitated before he spoke. He took in a deep breath again, trying to keep his anger at bay for this moment. "It was the fireworks. When I ran after you on…the night we fought, I…I thought about the fireworks you mentioned. I thought I could make up for my actions by going with you to festival…and seeing the fireworks together. When I saw them that night…I remembered.

"It was the only thing I thought about…even when I hit my head."

She was about to respond, but he ran out before she could. His reaitsu rising as he got further away. Momo slowly came and sat down on the floor of his room. Something about this whole situation seemed normal, more like it was before everything had happened.

She smiled in reflection.

These past few weeks had been like those days in the Jurianan.

Like those days before the war had occurred.

Like those days before all of the hurt and angst she had experienced this past year.

Like those days she knew would always be her deepest and best memories, just like the ones she would create with him in the future.

Whoa, that was long! Sorry for any spelling and grammar mistakes I missed -_-; . Man, I think everyone was OOC in this, not just Hitsugaya ^^;…

If you have time, comments and reviews are always greatly appreciated! :D

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!

Keep writing!

-Warrayfinson