Fruitcakes and Basket-cases

Author's Note: I've been out of the game for a while; hopefully I've developed since my earlier works. This story was written at the request of an ex-friend of mine, and it seemed like such a waste to leave it.

Disclaimer: All characters in this story do not belong to me and all copyright belongs to their respective creators, i.e. Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo and Fruits Basket belongs to Natsuki Takaya.

Chapter One

'Damn it! What is this strange reiatsu? It just appeared out of nowhere,' Ichigo Kurosaki thought this as he pelted across the street, oblivious to the car that came to a screeching stop. All he cared about was whether this new presence was a threat, which judging by the gradually appearing and more familiar signatures seemed more likely. He cursed again and came to a stop, ignoring the cyclist that had to swerve to miss him, 'It's no good just running towards the general direction…I don't even know where it actually is,' He closed his eyes and focused his mind, cancelling out the profanities being hurled his way, the mutters of disapproval, the sounds of traffic, the rustle of the leaves, the beating of his heart, and felt his senses sharpen as he performed the feat he had done so long ago on instinct.

He felt the hairs along his body stand on end and opened his eyes to a world of white ribbons. He cast his gaze about, scanning each one as he sought out the elusive marker, the flutter of red. A triumphant grin spread across his face as he snatched up the tail and raced with it, following it to its source. He came to a stop at a bridge overlooking the battle-site and surveyed the situation; Shuuhei and Izuru were directing the Hollow's attack, flanking it on both sides, while Chad focused on getting in as many hard hits as possible. Suddenly Shuuhei had disappeared, only to reappear on the other side of the beast as Nova pulled him through a portal, narrowly missing the blast sent by a second Hollow. The new arrival didn't stay for long, disintegrating from the arrow shot by Uryuu, only for three more to appear in its place. He watched, noting that both Renji and Rukia were doing their best to control the situation, while Orihime attacked from behind her shield, sending Tsubaki at the minions of the main target.

He clenched his fists about the rail and vaulted himself over; he needed to get down there to lend support. Chad was strong, but two heavy-hitters would get the job done faster and minimise the risk of danger to civilians. He slid down the slope, jumping off at the last moment and came onto the scene.

"Ichigo!" Orihime exclaimed, sparing a moment to look his way before directing Tsubaki's next attack.

"You finally made it," Uryuu said, launching five arrows in succession, hitting the three and two new ones. Ichigo nodded, only to feel himself being pulled and landed heavily on another side, watching the space he had just been at blow into dust. He looked to his side and saw Nova, sweat covering what was visible of his brow and noted his laboured breathing. Before he could say anything, the Mod-Soul had disappeared and reappeared beside Orihime, having seen the attack directed her way.

Taking advantage of this time, Ichigo reached for his badge only to feel an impact knock him back, followed by the chorus of his name as he sailed through the air. He landed heavily and cried out, his badge flying from his grasp and he scrambled for it. His fingers closed about it just as he felt himself being pulled away; he knew it was Nova, but was confused when he saw long, orange hair and then worried when he heard a panicked sound escape the Mod-Soul as his grip slipped.