A/N: When it comes to reading, I'm actually a big fan of one-shots. Cos I guess you don't have to wait for an update... I dunoe, there's something about a one-shot that can really shoot you straight to the gut if it's written well. I've read plenty of fantastic one-shots in my time...I still remember some of them.

Anyway, yeah. Snapshots of random things, random themes, whatever pops in my mind.. although as I'm obsessed with my OTP right now, my opening one-shot is, predictably, HijiTae. Take it as a companion piece to Timeskip if you wish...

Ironically, this first snapshot's title is Snapshot. Or maybe that's not so ironic as it is symbolic.

Snapshot

"Tadaima."

He was greeted with a cool stare.

"You're still up?" he asked, as he removed his boots.

"There isn't a wife in the whole of Japan who would go to sleep before her husband," Tae replied icily.

"I'm sorry," Hijikata said, as he hung his coat. "But I'm not committing seppuku because I was late."

Her glare made it apparent that she thought differently.

It takes a man of real guts to take this woman as a wife, Hijikata briefly thought. He walked over to where his wife was seated behind the kotatsu. "...Here." He held out a paper bag to her.

Tae raised her eyebrow. "Bargain Dash again? Sorry. There is so much Bargain Dash in this house that it has lost its value."

"It's not Bargain Dash. Take a look."

Despite herself, Tae took the paper bag and peered in. A small parcel was inside, wrapped in paper. Taking out the parcel, she started to unwrap it as Hijikata sat down beside her, some way away. He was still wary as to how angry she was and what she might do.

As Tae finally managed to remove all the paper, she stared at the shiny printed box in wonder. "This is..."

"It wasn't easy to get it. They aren't due to be sold to the public until next month...I had to pull all sorts of strings to get it."

Tae looked at him, her eyes wide. "For...me?"

"No, for Sougo," Hijikata deadpanned. "Of course it's for you."

Tae put the box down on the table. And proceeded to fling her arms around her bemused husband.

"Oi. You don't want to try it out?"

"I can do that tomorrow."

"...Really?"

"Okay..." Tae pulled away. "Just a little bit, then." Carefully, she opened the box and withdrew the styrofoam packing that held the pretty metallic pink digital camera.

"It's so cool..." she breathed as she turned it over. "...how do you use it?"

Hijikata chuckled. "Here." Taking the camera, he turned it over. "Hand me the batteries. They're inside the box."

"It uses batteries?"

"Well yeah, it needs power to work, doesn't it?"

"Wow...what kind of pictures can it take?"

"Normal pictures. And moving pictures too."

"Heeeee..." Tae gazed in rapt admiration at her husband who was now popping the batteries in.

"Okay, all set. The on button...yep."

Tae squealed as the camera came to life. Taking it back from Hijikata, her eyes widened as Hijikata materialized in front of her on the preview screen.

"You're here! You're in the camera!"

"Well, not IN the camera...instead of the lens, you just have to look at that screen to see what your photo will be like."

Tae hit the shutter and the on-screen Hijikata froze. "Wow! This is amazing!"

Hijikata leaned over to look. "Oi, delete that. My mouth is open and I look like an idiot."

"I like it," Tae said obstinately. Hijikata sighed but smiled in resignation.

"Let's take a picture!" Tae exclaimed. Leaning towards her husband, she turned the camera around so that the lens faced them instead. "One...two...three!"

They looked at the preview screen.

"Not bad."

"You're not even smiling!" Tae protested. "And half my face is gone."

"Well, hold it more to your side then."

"One more time!" Tae said excitedly.

"Iya, I'm really tired. I had to travel to Akihabara just to get this-"

"Come on! You're such a killjoy..."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The front door was ajar, as it always was. Shinpachi took a quick glance at the shoe racks. No boots, as expected.

"Ane-ue!" he called out. "You there?"

"Shin-chan, is that you? I'll be right out. Just doing the dishes. Make yourself at home."

"Jama shimasu," Shinpachi muttered as he entered the washitsu. As he sat down, he spied the digital camera sitting on the table. "Wow! Ane-ue, the whole of Edo has been waiting for this...did Hijikata-nii-sama get this for you?"

"Yup!" Came the reply from somewhere in the house.

"Can I look at it?"

"Sure! Oh wait hang on...let me think..." Shinpachi sweatdropped. "Okay, go ahead. There's nothing in there that you shouldn't see."

"Ane-ue, that kind of comment makes me feel really sick," Shinpachi remarked as he found the camera and turned it on. "Wow! It really does show the picture on the screen, just like the ads said. And you don't have to look through a tiny glass window!"

Shinpachi angled the camera to a shot of the small garden outside, and clicked. The screen froze, showing the picture he had just took.

"Cool..." Shinpachi mumbled to himself, proceeding to test all the buttons. "Oh! This must show all the pictures taken before mine..."

He looked through the pictures idly. They were extremely random. His sister had taken pictures of the kitchen, Hijikata, the living room, Hijikata putting on his boots, the morning's breakfast, Hijikata eating breakfast, the garden, Hijikata...Shinpachi sweatdropped.

Tae finally entered the living room. "Ahh, Shin-chan. What are you doing?"

Shinpachi looked up at her and smiled. "This is a nice picture, Ane-ue." He held up the camera to her.

Tae took the camera from him and looked at the small screen. On it, Tae was grinning at the camera, part of her arm visibly holding the camera away for the shot.

Next to her, instead of looking into the camera, Hijikata was gazing at his wife, an arm slung over her shoulder, a tender expression in his normally cold blue eyes and a half-smile on his lips.

Tae chuckled to herself. "Sou ne."

fin