Chapter 1~Rangiku's Idea

~One morning in the Squad 10 quarters~

"Matsumoto!"

"Hai?" the sleeping orange-blonde jolts awake at the familiar shout of her name. Doing so sends a couple more empty sake bottles to the already littered floor. Rangiku Matsumoto moans. Her head hurts. Again.

"Didn't I tell you to get back to work?" the voice from before growls menacingly. It comes from a spiky white-haired man standing behind the couch Rangiku was sleeping on. The man's arms are folded as he glares down on the woman.

"H-*hiccup*-ai, Captain..."Rangiku slowly swings her legs over the side of the sofa, moaning again and clutching her head. She wanted to sleep some more. Rangiku yawns loudly and reaches her arms over her head in a stretch. "I was just taking a quick nap..."

The man feels a vein pulse in his forehead. "Matsumoto, you're always taking a nap in my office." he says. "Honestly...you should be preparing for this mission instead of being hung-over like usual."

"But Captain..."Rangiku kind of whines, poking her full bottom lip out in a pout."I am preparing. I'm resting up for the trip to the Human World!"

"'Resting' does not include getting drunk with the other lieutenants at all hours of the night." Rangiku's captain sighs. He—Toshiro Hitsugaya, Squad 10 Captain of the Gotei 13—does not have time for this. "Now sober up and get ready to go."

With that, the young captain turns and exits the room, closing the door and leaving an icy chill in the room behind him. Rangiku shivers. She's used to her captain's chilly personality, but this time he seemed more grumpy than usual.

"The guy really needs to loosen up." Rangiku mutters, combing a hand through her long, flowing, orangish locks.

Sighing to herself, Rangiku gets up and stretches some more. Then she scans the room around her. Rangiku notices the several tall stacks of paperwork on Toshiro's desk. 'No wonder he's in a bad mood',Rangiku thinks, 'He hates leaving when there's work to be done.'

Rangiku notices a few more things (like the sake bottles surrounding the couch -_-") before spotting the clock on the wall.

"Crap," Rangiku gasps, "is it that late already? I'd better get a move on!"

~A few minutes later~

"Oi, Rangiku!"

Said woman, who's on her way to the Senkaimon gate, now stops and turns around. Not too far behind her is her red-headed, tattooed friend.

"Hey, Renji!" she smiles. Renji is one of the people going to the Human World with her. She waits for him to catch up, and then they keep walking together.

"So you're late too huh?" Renji chuckles.

"Ha-ha, yeah." Rangiku replies, scratching her cheek with a manicured finger. "Captain caught me resting for the trip."

Renji laughs, which echoes off the trees they're now passing. "I hear ya. Where is the little frosty anyway?"

Rangiku points in the direction they're headed. "Probably waiting for us at the gate. I hope he isn't too upset about us being tardy; you know how he likes to stay on schedule..."

"Ah, let 'im be upset." Renji says, walking with his hands behind his head. "Kid needs to learn to loosen up."

"Yeah I know," Rangiku smiles a little. It's funny how Renji talks big about her taicho behind his back, but kisses up when he's present.

The two pals walk in silence for a bit, their heels tapping against the stone path. Rangiku looks up at the clear blue sky, thinking about her captain, Toshiro. He's always been so stiff, concerned for nothing but work. He'd always get on Rangiku about slacking off on paperwork or drinking so much. The child prodigy was always so serious, hence his seemingly permanent scowl. Rangiku thinks of his only childhood friend—Lieutenant of Squad 5, Momo Hinamori—and wonders how long it's been since Toshiro had fun. Heck, she wonders if he even knows what the word 'fun' means.

Walking next to Renji, Rangiku silently sighs in distress. Her Captain really needs to live a little. Rangiku swears to herself that she'll get him to come out a little on this assignment if it's the last thing she does.

Matsumoto's mind then wanders toward the trip itself. She remembers things from the last time she was in the Human World. Like TV. And candy. And clothes. 'Oh, the clothes!'Rangiku gives a little squeal at the thought, startling Renji (who was lost in his own thoughts).

"Um...Rangiku?" he eyes her skeptically. "Are you okay?"

But she doesn't hear him. She's too busy putting together a list of all the shops from her previous visit that she wants to stop by. But how would she get away from her captain's frozen stare? 'Hm...Let's see...'

Eventually, Rangiku's fantasy about clothes and scheme to escape Hitsugaya merge into a blur: she starts imagining Toshiro in women's clothing. Rangiku gasps in surprise. In her mind, Toshiro looks...good!

"Kawaii!" she squeals again. She starts picturing her pretty little captain in a series of outfits.
Meanwhile, Renji Abaraii's scared. Wide eyed, he stares at Rangiku as if she has two heads. She's grinning and giggling to herself, letting out an outburst here and there, causing Renji to back away further. 'What the hell?'He wonders. 'Is she still drunk?' Suddenly, Rangiku turns to him. Renji freezes.

"Rennn-jiii..."Rangiku sings, coming close to wrap her arm around the Lieutenant of Squad man blushes at the proximity of Rangiku's large bosoms. The sneaky look is his friend's eye gives Renji dirty thoughts.

"I have an idea." Rangiku smirks. She leans into whisper in Renji's ear. Renji, blushing more at this, struggles not to feel seduced by her breath tickling his skin. He listens.

And then the dirty thoughts are forgotten as he hears Rangiku's proposal. He laughs heartily once she pulls away, grinning.

"You're crazy if you think he'd do that." he says.

"Come on, it'll be fun." Rangiku coaxes. "Please?"

"Ha-ha, fine, I'll help you." Renji says, even though he feels like he'll regret it. He chuckles. "But if he chickens out, you have to pay."

"Deal!" Rangiku agrees. Her eyes twinkle in excitement. She knows she'll win the bet. She believes in her captain. 'Just wait 'til I tell Ikkaku and Yumichika...this is gonna be good!'

~At the Senkaimon Gate~

'What is taking them so long?'A certain white haired captain wonders in annoyance. He resists tapping his foot in impatience because he's a captain and he doesn't want to look like a child. Then, finally, Toshiro feels the two approaching reiatsus.

"We're here, Captain!" his lieutenant calls as she comes into view. There's a mischievous grin on her face, as there in on Lieutenant Abaraii's (who appears next to her).Toshiro glares at the red haired-man, who cringes before going over to Ikkaku Madarame and Yumichika Ayasegawa.
"What took so long Matsu—?"

"I'm sorry captain," the woman blurts excitedly, causing Toshiro to quirk an eyebrow. "But I *lowers her voice* need to talk to you..."

Toshiro frowns his usual serious-frown. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

"No, no, not at all Captain. It's just..."

"Spit it out woman." Toshiro sighs in impatience. Glancing at the sun in the sky, he knows the group is late for departure. This makes him slightly snappy.

"It's just..."Rangiku tries to think of a way to put it so he'd agree."You know how you want me to take a break from sake?"

"Yeah..."Toshiro answers wearily.

"Well," Rangiku smiles, nervously. This went along much smoothly in her head, when her white haired taicho wasn't looking so irritated. She might as well spit it out. "I want to make you a deal. For the next month or so, in the Human World, I swear I won't taste a drop of sake..."

Toshiro hesitates. What? Rangiku, his hardly-ever-sober-lieutenant, not drinking for a whole month? Hitsugaya hides his surprise behind a practiced expressionless mask. "What are you...what's this all of a sudden?"

"Well...I kind of...wanted to make a deal with you Captain..."Rangiku glances at Renji. She knows he's over there giving the Squad 11 members the story.

Toshiro is intrigued. Rangiku never asked him to make a deal before. He ought to scold her for even considering him, Squad 10 Captain, to place a bet with. But curiosity gets the best of him.
"What kind of deal?"

"Well..."Rangiku gathers her courage. If she doesn't do this, she'll have to treat all the lieutenants to a night at the bar. And those guys could drink. "I'll stay sober for the whole trip and *gulp* make up my paperwork afterwards if..."

"If..."Toshiro is thoroughly interested now. He'd do anything if Matsumoto holds her end of this once-in-a-lifetime bargain.

"If you pretend to be a girl for this whole trip..."

Toshiro: ...
Rangiku: ...
Renji: ...
Ikkaku: ...
Yumichika: ...
Otaku786: …

"WHAT?"