Author's Note: Hi all, this is a rewrite, with permission, of FanFiction user AwarenessBringer's story, A Different Partner. I found it to be an interesting take, so I hope you all enjoy it as well. :3

Category: General Fluff

Characters: Rangiku Matsumoto, Ichigo Kurosaki

Requested By: Awareness Bringer (FanFiction)

The cold night breeze ruffled the loose fabric of Rangiku's death-black robes as she stood perched on the peak of a tall utility pole that cut through the charming but sprawling mass of Karakura Town. Though the diameter of the wound wooden structure was only a few inches or so, she balanced perfectly atop it, scanning the labyrinthine array of neighborhoods and business districts with hawk-like eyes. If one could see her, she wondered if they would mistake her for a assassin searching for her kill, or figure her a stoic sentry guarding over the sleepy little town by the river. Regardless, it did not matter, for no one could see Rangiku; she was a ghost, a specter, an invisible god of death. Rangiku did not come to this unassuming town for either purpose. She had come to find a man long missing- Isshin Kurosaki, her former superior in the parallel world, the Soul Society.

Isshin's reasons for spiriting away to the world of the living had never been divulged to Rangiku. One day, he had just never returned, leaving the young, impressionable honey-haired girl to wonder of his absence. Rangiku could not imagine his motives for doing so. Being a captain of the Soul Reapers was but the highest honor, and yet he had seemingly tossed it aside on a whim. Rangiku had been searching for him for the longest time and had finally caught whispers of his residence in Karakura Town. She had never regularly patrolled here, but if she had, she would've known in an instant. As soon as she had traversed the gap between her world and this one, his massive spiritual energy had greeted her like an old friend, overwhelmingly strong but nevertheless gentle and embracing. Blue eyes narrowing slightly, she crouched down on the pole once she had homed in on the source of the emanating spiritual energy.

Isshin… Why did you leave without saying good-bye?

With a single bounding leap, Rangiku shot into the sky. Her light, unseen form landed softly in the grassy yard of a quaint medical clinic. Rangiku's eyebrows crept up her head at the thought of the irresponsible and free-spirited Isshin handling the responsibilities of being a physician. It seemed the clinic also doubled as a residence, given by its layout and the soft yellow light burning in the windows. Rangiku's sandals scraped against the asphalt driveway as she approached the dwelling, peering through one of the windows to see a tastefully decorated living room. No one was currently there, prompting her to phase through the wall to step into the room. Curious as to how the man was now living, she poked around the room a bit, stopping by an end table when a photograph seated there caught her eye. She put her hands and leaned over to inspect it.

In the photograph was unmistakably Isshin, with a big, beaming grin and that thick dark hair and beard that always suited him so well. Seated beside him was a beautiful young woman with soft, motherly eyes and wavy caramel hair. Seated on her lap was a little boy with a shock of unnaturally orange hair, while Isshin was holding two baby girls, one who favored her mother and one who favored her father, in his big, muscular arms. Rangiku smiled forlornly as she brushed her fingers over the smooth glass of the photograph.

"I see… So you fell in love." Rangiku's bittersweet mood was instantly overtaken by the cold rush of adrenaline as hostile intent invaded the small space, and she was only just able to throw up her arm to block the savage kick that was about to be delivered to the side of her head. The force still sent her sliding several feet across the wooden floor of the building, and her forearm stung numbly at the area where the sole of a shoe was imprinted in dust into the fabric of her clothes. She lowered it slightly to see that same orange-haired boy, only a tall, scowling teenager now with his long leg still hoisted up from where he had kicked her.

"Who the hell are you and what are you doing in my living room?" he shouted with an accusing point of his finger. Now that the initial shock had worn off, the gears started whirling wildly in Rangiku's head. She was in her spirit form; there was no way that this boy could see her, let alone kick her! Yet, his ferocious glare was directed at her and her alone. Could it be possible that he somehow inherited some of Isshin's monstrous spiritual energy? Sure enough, if she concentrated, she found that the amount contained in that lithe frame of his was much greater than a normal human's. With a lofty sigh, Rangiku brushed the dusty imprint from her arm.

"So, you see ghosts, I take it? That has to be a right pain in the ass, I imagine."

"You damn right, and it's an even bigger pain in my ass when they invade the sanctity of my own home to beg me to sort out their unfinished business!" the boy groused hotly. It seemed he had realized that she was a spirit of some sort, so he lowered his foot to the floor. "Whatchu want, lady? Can't it wait until after dinner?"

"Who's Ichigo talking to in there?" chimed a sing-song girl's voice from what Rangiku surmised was the kitchen.

"He's probably being bugged by some ghost again. Let him handle it," came another girl's voice, more monotone and grumpier than the other's. Ah, so those must be Isshin's daughters…

"I'm here to see your father, actually, Isshin Kurosaki. Can you bring him in here to speak to me?" Rangiku had learned pretty much all she needed to know, but there was no way she was leaving without speaking to him a little. The boy frowned in befuddlement at her as he dug into one of his ears with his pinky finger. He reminds me a lot of Isshin…

"My old man can't see ghosts." This made Rangiku's eyes take on the form of dinner saucers. Had something occurred to rob Isshin of his spiritual powers? She had been sure that she had felt his spiritual energy… Rangiku momentarily wondered if it had been the boy- Ichigo's- spiritual energy instead, but surely that could not be possible; a human simply couldn't contain enough spiritual energy to rival a Soul Reaper's, especially not a high-ranking officer's! Rangiku considered leaving for a moment, but luck was on her side; with a deranged howl, the man she had come to Karakura Town to see came flying through the entryway, poised to drop-kick Ichigo in the back of the head. With an angry shout, the boy just narrowly ducked, and Isshin flew the rest of the way across the living room to bury himself calf-deep into the drywall. He hung there awkwardly for a moment while Rangiku gawked in utter disbelief. Who the hell tried to casually drop-kick their son?! "You crazy old man!" Ichigo shouted from where he was crouched shielding his skull. "You're gonna kill me one day, you know that?!"

"Well, who else is gonna keep you one your toes?" the man laughed good-naturedly while extracted his leg from the large, gaping hole he had just put into the wall. He sighed lightly as he began brushing sheetrock dust from his pressed slacks.

"Who says I need to be kept on my toes?! And who the hell is gonna fix that hole in the wall, 'cuz it sure ain't gonna be me!" Ichigo continued yelling as he straightened up and crossed his arms in a downright furious glare. His eyes flashed to the shell-shocked Rangiku before returning to his dumbass of a father. "Oh, by the way, there's a lady ghost here to see you. She's a blonde, dressed funny in this black robe thing, got a katana hangin' at her waist."

"Hey!" Rangiku cried indignantly at his less-than-flattering depiction of her. The boy just shrugged and waved a hand dismissively.

"Oh?" Isshin asked and looked at the area where he surmised Rangiku was standing, but it was so spot-on that for a moment, she couldn't believe that he couldn't see her at all. He looked back at his son with a positively devilish grin and said no words, only juggled his hands in a gesture that very obviously commented on her gracious endowments. Ichigo turned a bright shade of pink and began yelling at him again, while Rangiku wished dearly that she could clock him into next week.

"I can't hit him, so do it for me, will you?" she requested grumpily of his flustered and mortified teenage son while rubbing her temples.

It wasn't like she could spill everything about Soul Reapers and the Soul Society to the young human boy, so she explained just enough for his own curiosity to be satisfied. It was quite obvious that Isshin did not wish for his son to know about his former Soul Reaper status, so Rangiku lied, stating that she had known him in human life and she was simply here to see how he was doing. With Ichigo serving as her interpreter, she conversed amiably with Isshin. Ultimately, she was content with his current state of being. He seemed genuinely happy and loved his family very much. His happiness was plenty enough for Rangiku.

She was about to bid adieu to the young man and his father when her Hollow tracker suddenly began beeping alarmingly in her pocket. When she whipped it out to find it quite on top of them, she hadn't even the time to warn Isshin or Ichigo before the living room wall exploded into splinters. Isshin scrambled to protect his terrified and screaming little girls while Ichigo bowled over the couch, knocking it over and landing roughly to just narrowly avoid the creature's sharp claws as they tried to rip his bowels open. Rangiku whipped out her sword and managed to take the fight with the Hollow outside, but she very soon became unmatched. Lying in the street with blood gushing from an open wound in her abdomen, she groaned and crawled towards the wrecked house as the Hollow sought to devour Ichigo's monstrous spiritual energy. The orange-haired boy came crashing out of a bedroom window into the street, panting wildly and running over to Rangiku.

"What the hell are you gonna do now?!" he hissed as he helped the weak, bleeding woman to her knees. "Get up and fight, or my family is gonna die! I don't have the power to fight that thing!" Rangiku's eyes were heavy and lidded as she struggled to remain conscious.

"I can't," she moaned as she pressed a hand into her wound. Hot, sticky blood gushed through the gaps of her fingers to paint her hand in the crimson substance. Her blue eyes flickered to Ichigo. "I'll loan you my powers, just long enough for you to take out that monster! There's no time to think; either you will or you won't!" Ichigo swallowed thickly, staring at her with wide eyes, before nodding firmly.

"Your name, first."

"Hehe. It's Rangiku Matsumoto."

Things didn't go according to plan. His spiritual energy was far higher than anything she could have imagined, so he ended up stealing all her powers right then and there. They would return, with time, but there was no way that Rangiku could return to the Soul Society in such a state. Thus, she was forced to remain in the human world for the time being. It wasn't all bad; since Ichigo had her powers now, she was all but forced to train him to be a Soul Reaper, but he really had a knack for it. In addition, she transferred to his high school and was gushed over by all the cute little high school boys (much to Ichigo's chagrin).

Still, despite everything, Rangiku really liked having Ichigo as a partner, even if only temporary. It reminded her very much of her hayday with his father, who was so like him but so different in many ways.