Author and disclaimer on one: I don't think it's even necessary, you know I don't own Bleach. Anyway, the story just popped in my head so r&R. r= read and R= review.

After waking up.

"AHHHHHH!" Her scream could be heard across all of Seireitei. He bet that at least half of the people in his division laughed, or snickered. "Shiro-Chan! That's not funny!"

"What?" Was his usual stoic response.

"Don't do that! I was baking cookies!" He adorable little pout caused him to look anywhere but at her, so he was able to see the damage he caused. The cookie dough she had held in her hands was now everywhere. (I mean everywhere.) On the ceiling, the counters, the stove, hair, and a variety of other places that all looked like his clothes. Absolutely covered. The bowl was nowhere to be seen. It was scary.

"Was it exploding cookie dough?" He asked, laughing on the inside at her small frown.

"No." Her eyes brimmed with tears and he started to regret having snuck up on her in the first place. "I was making cookies for your division; I didn't mean to get it everywhere… But it's your fault! You scared me!"

He sighed and scratched the back of his head. "Sorry… I didn't mean to scare you Hinamori."

She smiled brightly at him, her tears forgotten. "It's okay, but we have to clean this up! Come on!" She dragged him over to where the cleaning supplies were.

"It's nice to hear that things are semi-normal again." His voice soft and filled with the quiet laughter that reverberated throughout the room, the man across from him laughed quietly too. "Do you think she'll always have him wrapped around her little finger?

"Always, forever and for eternity, until the ends of time, whatever fits them best I suppose…" He tilted his hat forward to cover his eyes. "Something like that happens only once in a million years. It would be impossible for something as trivial as a little incident to separate them."

His white haired drinking partner nodded. "Yes, I think you're right… Hey Shunsui?"

"Yes Jyuu-chan?" His hat back in it's normal position.

"Are you and Nanao back on normal terms?"

His friends laugh answered him, but he went ahead anyway. "Yeah, were back to normal too. Though…" His hat went back to in front of his eyes, his free hand reached down to his sake cup. "I heard Matsumoto is only putting up a strong front… little Shiro is worried about her."

"Yeah? I heard that too…" He trailed off. Ukitake looked out the window they sat by. His hands curved gently around the steaming cup of tea before him. "In fact, I didn't hear him yell at her yesterday. His streak of yelling at her everyday was either broken because he never saw her… or because of something else." He finished sadly.

"All we can do is hope that she gets better, better not get too worked up."

"Ah."

Matsumoto was in fact drunk at the moment. Not her usual drunk and can handle it state, since her friends weren't there to restrain her drinking, she was beyond that and into total drunk and is out of her mind state. The thing about this state was that she would lock herself into her room and just chug away, didn't care.

"Rangiku-san?" A voice penetrated her stupor. "Rangiku-san? What are you doing? You said you wouldn't drink tonight! Oh… what's Shiro-chan going to say?" The voice was… she tried so hard, but the name kept slipping through her fingers. Maybe she should match the name with a face. Shiro-chan huh?...

She sat bolt upright. "Taicho?" Looking around wildly she saw chocolate eyes looking at her with concern. "You… are noth Thaitho. (pronunciation guide: th-i-th-o) Who are you?" Her drunken state mixing up the few words she could say. The girl looked at her a few minutes before Matsumoto fell asleep again. Soon though, she woke up again.

"Rangiku Matsumoto! You are going to give yourself alcohol poisoning one of these days and I will not help you!" A very angry third seat of the 4th division shouted… what was her name? Matsumoto couldn't remember.

"Thank you for coming… I know she is able to hold her alcohol well and all. I'm just worried." The girl that had looked at her worriedly turned and started talking to the newcomer.

"Not at all Hinamori-kun! You have every right to be worried anyway. She is going to kill herself one of these days; it's good to have a friend willing to stop you."

"I guess your right. Oh, and she doesn't remember much at the moment." Who was talking blurred in her mind.

"Really? That doesn't usually happen, why do you say that?"

"She didn't remember my name." Everything went black.

"Matsumoto wake the hell up." That was Taicho's voice right?

"Moi, Shiro-chan be nice." That voice was different… a girl… maybe Hinamori.

"Guys, she's waking up." That one was…was… she felt like she should know this.

Blinking her eyes open she saw five people in the room. After seeing her Taicho's worried scowl, her memory came flooding back. "Oh." Was all she said.

Unohana dismissed the two people from her squad and then left herself.

"Rangiku-san!"

"Matsumoto!" They both yelled at once. She winced, what a hangover this was going to be.

Hinamori now scowled and her Taicho crossed his arms across his waist, letting her take over. "You said you wouldn't drink! In fact, you promised!"

Two things influenced what she was about to do. One was she thought she had finally put Hinamori over the edge and the other was she couldn't stand seeing her Taicho look at her like that. "I'm sorry…" Her voice quiet and subtle. "I saw the bottles in my room and couldn't help myself,"

Her Taicho shook his head and sat down, propping his head on his hand. Hinamori scowled even deeper, that look did not belong on her face. "You. P-r-o-m-i-s-e-d," She spelled out. "You said you could restrain yourself. You said I wouldn't have to worry about you." Hinamori eyes became hurt. "And you said I could trust you." She walked out of the room, the robes of Hitsugaya swishing behind her.

"Matsumoto…" He looked at her from the door way and saw her eyes brimming with uncharacteristic tears at Hinamori's actions. "I really hope you haven't pushed Hinamori over the edge, you are an older sister to her and the fact that you betrayed her trust is not something she easily forgets if it has pushed her over the edge. And you very well know that." He left without another word.

She did know that. She almost knew that better then anyone, about how hard it was to gain Hinamori's absolute trust after the Aizen incident happened. Only her closest friends held it, and they would only hold it if they upheld their end of the deal. Make sure she doesn't stop trusting them, and make sure they don't push her too hard.

It seemed that afterwards, after the whole incident thing happened, she still trusted everyone. Matsumoto was scared that she had just lost that trust that Hinamori held dear to her heart; that had stood after so many things were thrown at it. For the first time since the war, she cried.

Hinamori bounced into the tenth division office, a plate of cookies in-between her hands. "Shiro-chan!"

"Don't call me that bed-wetter." He shook his head and glanced up at her, she smiled brightly at him. Gently she set the cookies in front of him and leaned in. The soft whisper grazed his ear and then she was gone.

"Oh, what was that about Jyuu-chan's mini me?" Shunsui swept into the room and smiled at the scowling boy.

"Nothing of your concern." Such a stoic reply. "And do not call me that!" He has emotion after all.

"Oh? I guess not eh?" His hat shrouded his eyes from the chibi captains' view.

"May I ask what you want in my division Kyouraku?" Hitsugaya gave up on his paperwork for the moment and grabbed a cookie.

"I just wanted to ask how Matsumoto-Chan is doing. I would rather not lose a drinking buddy." His voice kind and affectionate.

Hitsugaya froze for a second and then he quickly bit into the cookie in his hand. After finishing his bite he looked at the older man with a discerning eye. One might give this to their teenage daughter's boyfriend if they were the daughters dad… "She is fine." He said after considering it for a bit

"I see… And how is Momo-Chan?" His voice held more then mild curiosity, though what else it held was hard to tell. It could almost be called concern

"Since when were you on such good terms with Hinamori?" His voice so accusing, that had Kyouraku had not been Kyouraku, he would have ran out of the room screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Eh? Didn't mean to offend you Hitsu-Chan… Momo-Chan and I have been friends for a while due to Rangiku's… excessive drinking for lack of a better word," He looked at the small captain, who had a vein pulsing at the familiarity he used Momo's name. "We were friends before but that caused us to become better friends," The fact that he hadn't been frozen yet was a miracle.

"I see," Hitsugaya's tone was icy and crusted over. "Well, to your earlier question, she is fine."

"Ah, that's good to hear. Well, see you later Jyuu's mini me." Walking out, there was one thing that stuck in Kyouraku's mind. You are a very good writer of lies mini Shiro.

Matsumoto was in the library, finding a book obviously. The fact that her captain had sent her there pissed her off. She wasn't allowed to go after Hinamori, which was against her rules but if she did go would go against her captain. Maybe I should make a new rule book. She thought to herself.

She wanted Hina-Chan's approval again. It made her feel good that someone who had been betrayed in the trust department was able to trust her. It just made things easier. That and Hina was her best of best friend. Maybe she'll forgive me. How unlike me, worrying like this. Why can't I get back to being me? Her thought freezing her body mid motion. That's it! If I get back to the way I was before he died then I can be happy again and not worry~~ Rangiku Matsumoto! You are a genius, even if your captain doesn't see it.

Sneaking past Hinamori's 'Shiro-Chan' was not as easy as it sounded. More so since he was her captain and knew her way to well for her own good. So used her own knowledge reserves. As soon as she was past him however, she had another challenge. Getting to Hinamori without anyone else seeing her first, easier said then done. She was no kido-expert like Hinamori. So, she used a simpler kido that required less concentration.

She made it into Hinamori's room without a hitch. Pumping her fists into the air, she did a Rangiku-like twirl. Laughing quietly she set to work, making one of her famous 'Forgive ME' cakes. Laughing all the while and snickering at the thought of what her Taicho would do to her.

Finally, she heard Hinamori enter the house. Something was off however, Taicho was with her. This would not do. Plan B set into affect.

He heard the rock being thrown and went outside to see a small little pebble, roughly the size of his pinky, outside the door. The door slammed shut behind him.

"Yes!" She jumped around and did her famous twirl. "Oh!" turning to her bewildered friend, she threw herself at Hinamori and squeezed her to her own 'assets'. "Hina-Chan! I heard your were still mad at me so I made you a cake!" Pulling her away she found a blue Hinamori. "You okay? Anyway come one!"

She rudely shoved Hinamori into the kitchen and showed her the fruit cake made out of peaches. "See? So do you forgive me? PLEASE? " She bent onto her knees and hugged the short girl's waist. "PLEASEEEEE?"

"Okay… Rangiku-…San…" She struggled to get out her words. "Please stop squeezing me…though"

"Okay!" Matsumoto bobbed up and grinned at her once again best friend. Hinamori grinned back.

Her grin however faded. "Are you feeling better Rangiku-san?"

Matsumoto leaned down and whispered in her ear while hugging her gently this time. "Yes Hina-Chan, and it's all thanks to you. Thank you for not giving up on me."

"Your welcome…"

"OH!" Matsumoto pulled back and looked her friend in the eye with her old friend. "And do you have the hots for Taicho?"

"RANGIKU-SAN!"