It Takes Time

By: Le tired

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or its characters, blah blah blah, etc.

Rated: T for some language and…stuff?

Author's Notes: Hooray, another chapter! This was sort of the one that a while back I had to re-write completely because of my OCD. Both the manga and anime explain how Team Hitsugaya actually started out with Rukia and Renji, and Matsumoto and Hitsugaya actually just sort of tagged along in the end. I was under the impression that Hitsugaya had been ordered to go down and chose the team (sort of like in the Bount arc). It wasn't crucial to the plot development in the fic, but I just couldn't let the discrepancy go. Plus it was more amusing to try and imagine exactly how the tenth division got involved. Also, I expanded my POV repertoire to Byakuya too! I wasn't sure if it was more potent to leave his thoughts in or out, but I finally went with in, because he'll probably show up again later and I wanted to set up how I see his character.

KhempriIrisi: Many thanks for the review! Hope you enjoy the next chapter! :)

bandgirlz: Hahaha true, you have a point, I probably wouldn't be sleeping if there was a Hitsugaya in my bedroom either. But then again, Matsumoto gets him all to herself every day at work so maybe she's a little more used to him? :P I completely know what you mean about working on the same chapter, it happened to me last week, drove me nuts. Ended up scrapping fifteen pages' worth of drafts o_O. But hang in there, and I know you'll be able to finish it and move on!

Writing bunny: Thank you! Matsumoto is as always super fun to write ^_^.

kriitiko: Haha yeah I think the talk is coming up in the next few chapters, that should be fun to work through.

Prince of Winter Dragons: Thanks as always for the kind review! They really help keep me going when I'm slowing down on the writing :). Peace and love!

Chapter 17

Matsumoto didn't remember falling asleep, but she must have at some point, because when she came to, rays of the morning sun were filtering in through her window, and Hitsugaya was gone. Too bad. Part of her had hoped he'd been so tired that he fell asleep by her side. Then they could have woken together to look into each other's eyes, like the hero and heroine in a romance. Oh well. It had still be one of the most refreshing slumbers in her life, and save for a mild hangover, she felt great. She loved her taichou so much!

And he still had to make up for the date. She thought about it as she indulged in a long hot shower. It was cute of him to offer, but left to his own devices, she was pretty sure Hitsugaya would come with something utterly underwhelming. She knew her taichou and Casanova, he was not. No, if she wanted to make the best of this situation, she should figure out what she wanted, then guilt him into it.

Hmm, she could make him buy her something nice and expensive. Or maybe have him be her personal slave for a day. Mmm, she could use a foot rub…but no, those ideas were too petty. She could easily harass him into buying her something, and well let's face it…she usually had her way with him in the end, so long as she didn't cross certain lines, so slavery was kind of redundant. No, this had to be bigger, longer-lasting. Something he wouldn't do normally, even with her finest wheedling. But also something not too embarrassing. She wasn't completely heartless, after all.

She thought about asking Renji, but remembered that he was going to the human world…and that was when it hit her. The perfect way for Hitsugaya to make up the date.

Hitsugaya read the document. He read it again. Closed his eyes and rubbed them. And read it again. Its contents didn't change, but there was clearly some mistake. Even Matsumoto couldn't be crazy enough to really think he'd consider this. And yet, here she stood before his desk, smiling triumphantly and brandishing the paper in question.

"Well, taichou? You said you'd make it up to me!"

"I didn't say I would just do whatever you wanted!"

"But…c'mon, taichou, this'll be so much fun!"

There she went again, with her twisted nightmarish idea of 'fun'. "Matsumoto, this is a mission. To monitor for arrancars. This is not fun. This is serious business." Hitsugaya briefly remembered Yamamoto talking about a small group led by Abarai that would soon be traveling to the human world as part of their response to the arrancars. The presence of a captain would be appreciated, but not required since it was largely a reconnaissance mission. Naturally, no captain had volunteered. Missions in the human world were a pain in the ass, with the gigais and soul phones and power limiters.

"Sure, taichou, but when we're not monitoring arrancars, we can have a lot of fun!"

"This is not open for discussion. I'm not signing my consent, and that's final." He returned to the recruitment plan he was revising. They needed to build up the squad in preparation for Aizen's attack, but who wanted to join the military during an upcoming war? He'd heard a significant percentage of the would-be Shinigami at the Academy had dropped out as well. The only ones who remained were those from the poorer districts and slums, who essentially had no choice and had hoped for better lives as Shinigami. And even when they became Shinigami, if they were smart, they'd opt for the fourth or twelfth divisions, which generally weren't on the front lines. Wages would definitely have to be hiked.

At least the tenth division had a reputation with its child prodigy captain and sexy lieutenant. A questionable reputation, but a reputation nonetheless. He could usually count on some slackers choosing the division thinking he couldn't intimidate them into working, and some perverts joining after seeing Matsumoto. Hitsugaya didn't exactly take pride in the strategy, but beggars couldn't be choosers. Besides, they quickly learned appearances were deceiving.

Matsumoto sighed as her captain continued poring over numbers. Well, she'd known it wasn't going to be easy. Time for Plan B. "You're right, taichou. It's a serious mission. It's a huge opportunity to learn more about our enemies and what Aizen might have in mind. It certainly beats all the sitting around on our hands here." She smirked when she saw her captain hesitate. Gotcha. "And I know how you always want to do what's the most helpful for Soul Society, Hitsugaya-taichou."

Hitsugaya glared up at her. "And I know how you always want to go the human world to SHOP, Matsumoto-fukutaichou."

Hmm, he was sharp today. "So you kill two birds with one stone, taichou! You get to do something for Soul Society and me at the same time! What could be better?"

Hitsugaya sat back and gestured to the papers all over his desk. "How about making sure our work is properly done and the division is running smoothly? Which reminds me, I need you to really sell our division when the new Shinigami come around. Flirt with every one of them if you have to. Our goal is to increase our squad size by thirty percent."

Matsumoto pretended to be shocked. "Taichou! You're telling me, your girlfriend, to flirt with other men?"

"And women, if they'll go for you." Hitsugaya scowled, recalling the bar fiasco last night. "It's not like I'm asking you to do anything you don't happily do all the time already. If you're going to cause nosebleeds, you might as well do it for the good of our unit."

"Fine, I'll do it. But you go on this mission with me."

"No," Hitsugaya said, without missing a beat.

"Taichou!" Matsumoto huffed. She should've known that things had been going too smoothly the last few days with her captain. She'd tried whining, appealing to his sense of responsibility, and even bartering. She had one last gambit. It could go badly but she had to try. "All right, taichou, I know I can't change your mind."

"Good."

"I'll just go by myself." She turned to leave.

"Wait, what!"

She smiled secretly at Hitsugaya's cry, then turned to look innocently at her taichou. "Whaat, taichou? Just because you're not going doesn't mean I can't! You just sit here and keep at your paperwork, while I go fight some arrancars unsupervised. Well, Renji does have bankai, although he's far from captain-level." She sighed and started to exit again. "Life's so unpredictable for a fukutaichou. Goodbye, Hitsugaya-taichou, take good care of yourself if I don't see you again. Remember that I did the best I could for Soul Society, while you obsessed about recruitment."

"Matsumoto, you're being ridiculous! There's no need for you to go!"

"Ah, do you know who the rest of the team is, taichou?" Matsumoto continued, ignoring her captain's spluttering. "Ikkaku and Yumichika. I couldn't think of a more reliable team, don't you think?"

"…that's the worst team ever!" It really was, in Hitsugaya's eyes. Abarai was a pretty decent fukutaichou, but those two crazies from the eleventh division? Sure, they were excellent fighters, but they had some serious personality disorders. There was no way they were going to be able to work in any coordinated fashion. What was Yamamoto thinking, letting Abarai choose his team? Again, he couldn't help doubting the way Soul Society was run sometimes.

"Don't worry, taichou, I'll keep an eye on those rowdy boys!" Matsumoto made the victory sign with her fingers.

"You'd only make things worse!"

"Well, I'm sorry if that's how you feel, taichou, but I've already turned in the paperwork, and Renji is totally fine with it." (Renji, in fact, wasn't fine with his mission being used as a wacky lovemaking project for Matsumoto, but she'd promised to make life very difficult for him if he refused) Matsumoto gave a little wave. "I'll be going now, taichou!"

"Matsumoto!"

Matsumoto batted her eyes at her irate captain. "Yeessss, taichou?" She almost had him.

"…"

"Remember, taichou, this would clear your debt to me."

"…"

"And you get to do something productive with your time."

"…"

"And you get to make sure I don't do anything really bad."

"…give me the paper."

YES! Matsumoto smiled and handed the form over. That had been close. If her captain refused, she'd have to go on the mission with Renji, Ikkaku, and Yumichika (because any future threats at her captain wouldn't work if she wasn't known to follow through with them). And as fun as a trip to the human world would be with her friends, she didn't really want to go anywhere without her taichou. Her place was with him.

But she'd thought there was a pretty good chance Hitsugaya would give in if she went. They'd always worked on field missions together. A captain could usually leave such missions to his lieutenant or seated officers, but as Matsumoto had pointed out before, Hitsugaya had a tendency to micro-manage. Take that and add to it Matsumoto's tendency to overlook a mission objective or forget to write up the ensuing report, and it wasn't hard to understand why Hitsugaya was feeling slightly paranoid about letting her go on this venture unsupervised.

Matsumoto gleefully watched her taichou sign the paper. "I can't believe I'm doing this," he muttered as he finished. "There's something very wrong with me."

"Don't be so hard on yourself, taichou. You just care about me and the other officers." She bent down and gave him a peck on the cheek, then leaned close to his ear and said breathlessly, "Ohandweleaveinhalfanhour. Bye taichou!" And dashed out the door.

"Half an hour?" Hitsugaya spluttered, looking at the unfinished work still on his desk. "MATSUMOTO!"

I need a new lieutenant, was all Toshirou could think as he waited by the senkaimon with Abarai and the others. Besides the actual team, Ukitake had come to see Rukia off, which of course meant Kyoraku was there as well. Kuchiki Byakuya was also there, presumably for his sister and lieutenant. Shouldn't it be him going on the mission instead of me? Toshirou couldn't help thinking a little bitterly. He wished they could just hurry up and leave. They were pretty much ready, too.

Except for one thing: they were missing Matsumoto.

Abarai cast another nervous, questioning look at him. Toshirou pretended not to notice. What could he say? "Oh yeah, we were supposed to leave ten minutes ago, weren't we? But we can't because of my lieutenant? Oh, she's probably packing her makeup. Yes, it's stupid, yes I know…what's that? Oh, why isn't she more disciplined? Yes, it sort of is my responsibility isn't it, as her captain? Hah, well yes, basically it's because I'm a sorry and incompetent excuse for a captain and despite working with her for years and years, the only solution I've been able to come up with is just to bear it and do all the work myself. Yeah, it's pretty pathetic, isn't it? But them's the breaks. Sorry, everyone."

The exact same thoughts seemed to be running through Kuchiki's mind as he looked over at Toshirou. Toshirou again pretended to be oblivious to the fact that after butting uninvited into the mission, his lieutenant didn't even have the grace to show up on time and was now actively holding them back.

"A word with you, Hitsugaya-taichou." He sighed inwardly. It looked like Kuchiki was determined to tell him off.

"What is it, Kuchiki?"

The other captain didn't answer immediately. Instead, he stared straight forward impassively. Toshirou gritted his teeth and waited. Finally, Kuchiki spoke so lowly Toshirou could barely hear him. "My younger sister is under your care now. I trust you will not let any harm come to her."

Toshirou felt his temper flare at the noble's officious tone. Besides Kurotsuchi, Kuchiki was probably the least popular captain among the Gotei 13. Sure, the women liked him for his elegant looks and refined manners, but the recent way he'd treated his own sister and lieutenant had given him a pretty bad name among the male officers. Who wanted to work under a superior that didn't hesitate to cut down his allies? Still, having never really interacted with him, Toshirou had given the man the benefit of a doubt, especially after learning of how the other captain violated the laws of his house for love. This was a deeply passionate and conflicted man who simply did not know how to present himself well to others. Toshirou could even empathize with him a bit.

Well, forget that. In the end, the man was another aristocrat through and through, who probably couldn't see beyond Toshirou's past as a penniless Rukongai brat. Still, Toshirou tried to remain professional. The man was just looking out for his family. "I promise I'll do my best to watch over her and keep her out of danger as much as possible."

"Will you really?" Kuchiki's voice was dry. "I doubt you will pay quite as much attention to her as you do to your own fukutaichou, since she doesn't have such…visible assets. Then again, that's probably for the best. My sister is too good for you."

Ah. So that was Kuchiki's problem. And here Toshirou had thought he'd heard the last from the captains regarding him and Matsumoto after the meeting last night. He'd thought that maybe Kuchiki actually had the class and decorum to mind his own business. Boy was he mistaken.

"I'm afraid I can't entirely take these accusations seriously when they're coming from the brother who tried to execute her."

"I did not try to execute her." Kuchiki's voice grew deceptively soft, like the deadly sakura petals of his bankai. "I merely enforced the decree regarding her execution. The decree all captains are supposed to enforce. But the tenth division seems to believe it is above all laws and rules of propriety."

"Laws and rules are meant to protect the innocent and uphold good in the world. The moment they fail to do that is the moment I stop following them. If that's something you can't or won't understand, then I'm sorry."

"And how is gallivanting around with that loose drunkard of a woman meant to protect the innocent or uphold good?"

There was a pause, where Toshirou struggled to process what he thought he heard. When it finally sank in, blood roared in his ears. "Don't you ever call her that, Kuchiki," he managed to ground out hoarsely. He could feel his reiatsu flaring out, and the temperature in the area dropped at least ten degrees. The other officers in the room looked nervously over at the two hostile captains, and backed away.

"Hey, hey, Hitsugaya-taichou, Kuchiki-taichou, there's no need to get so worked up now, is there?" Kyoraku asked, holding up his hands placatingly.

Ukitake was also doing his best to sound soothing. "Yes, whatever it is that you're arguing about, I'm sure we can resolve this peacefully—"

"Matsumoto is neither loose or a drunkard. I'll give you she's prone to excess during times of leisure, but she has always carried herself in a way that befits a lieutenant of the Gotei 13. She doesn't deserve to be slandered by the likes of you, especially in my presence."

He could feel Kuchiki's reiatsu rolling out to counter his own. The black-haired captain's outward expression didn't change, but the scorn in his voice had doubled. "You'd go so far as to fight me for her? You've truly fallen, Hitsugaya."

"Oh, Kuchiki-taichou, you didn't insult Rangiku-san, did you?" Kyoraku asked. "That's not very kind, and Hitsugaya-taichou, there's no need to get so up in arms—"

"Because you didn't when you married a commoner?" Toshirou snapped. "Don't give yourself airs, Kuchiki. If I'm in the wrong, so are you. And you made things far worse for yourself when you couldn't decide which path to follow: the one dictated by your house or the one in your heart. You spat on both your ancestors and the woman you loved by betraying one and then the other!"

"Let's not judge each other," Ukitake said, smiling nervously. "Who's to say who's right and—"

"Are you saying you wouldn't have done the same in my position?"

"No, I wouldn't. If I made a promise to the woman I loved, I would have seen her will through to the end." Toshirou watched Kuchiki closely for any warning movements. He didn't think they were actually going to fight. He really hoped not; this would be the dumbest reason by far for him ever to have crossed swords. Then again, he seemed to be on this unhappy streak of fighting other captains, what with Aizen and Gin. And he didn't exactly feel like backing down, and Kuchiki didn't strike him as the most yielding person either.

Byakuya said, "Good."

Toshirou blinked, taken completely off guard. "Good. What's good?" He was of the opinion things were pretty damn bad at the moment.

Kuchiki turned away, nodding as if they'd just come to some sort of mutual agreement. "Here comes your fukutaichou."

"Uh—"

"Here I am, sorry I'm late!" Matsumoto ran up panting breathlessly, but smiling. "I had to make a list of everyone I wanted to buy souvenirs for!" She stopped and frowned. "Ah, there's so much reiatsu in the air, and everyone looks so tense. Was there a fight?"

"No," Kuchiki responded calmly. Everyone else gaped at the blatant lie, but didn't say anything.

"Oh. Um, okay." Matsumoto shrugged and turned to Toshirou. "Taichou, my list is pretty extensive and I also still have to do some shopping for myself. Do you think I can borrow some money from you?"

"…what? NO! Will you stop treating this like a shopping trip?"

"Umm, Hitsugaya-taichou, is it all right if I open the senkaimon now?" Abarai asked tentatively.

"YES. Do it. I want this done and over with," Toshirou growled.

"Don't be so grumpy, taichou!" Matsumoto threw her arms around her captain and buried his head in her cleavage. "Remember, this is to make up for our date, so you can't be unpleasant, or it won't count!"

"Hah? I thought you guys made up for the date last night back at her place," Ikkaku said, scratching his bald head. "I mean, sex makes a helluva lot more sense than coming along to kill Hollows with us. Or do you guys have some weird fetish?"

"Ikkaku, don't ask questions so straightforwardly!" Yumichika reprimanded his friend. "Obviously, Hitsugaya-taichou wasn't able to perform satisfactorily. It isn't very beautiful to draw attention to such facts."

"It's true," Matsumoto sighed, still pressing her captain's head firmly against her so he couldn't protest. "He certainly gave his best effort, but well, I think my poor little taichou is too stressed out here to properly let loose. I think he'll be a lot more uninhibited in the human world."

"MATSUMOTO!" Toshirou finally managed to wrestle himself free. His face was livid. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Taichou, you need to learn how to take a joke."

"No one jokes about this sort of thing, you madwoman!"

"Uhh…the senkaimon is open now…"

Cursing to himself, Toshirou stalked through the glowing door of light. If this was any indication of how the mission was going to go, he should probably save some time and just kill himself.

Kuchiki Byakuya watched the small party with his sister disappear into the senkaimon. The gates closed solidly behind them. That had been…interesting. He'd never particularly noticed the tenth division, but perhaps he should pay closer attention. It had been a whim to confront Hitsugaya about his lieutenant. Certainly, there had been relationships between a captain and his lieutenant before, but most of them were kept as discreet as possible, and everyone else pretended not to know of their existence out of courtesy. But, this lieutenant had broken tradition and spread the news far and wide, and even more remarkably, her captain had not made any real effort to silence her.

It was extraordinary. Improper, his grandfather would say. Of course Byakuya agreed. That was probably why he found himself unintentionally pushing the tenth division captain—he wanted the young man to show some embarrassment, some indication that somewhere deep inside he knew what he was doing was wrong.

But no such embarrassment came. Hitsugaya just grew angrier and angrier, almost to the point of violence. Byakuya had not expected that. From the white-haired captain's generally cool and professional manner, he'd assumed Hitsugaya was a man who also valued pride and dignity, not entirely unlike Byakuya himself. After this encounter, Byakuya had to admit perhaps he'd been hasty in judging and dismissing the new captain so quickly.

Hitsugaya actually reminded him more now of…someone else. Who was it? It had taken Byakuya a moment. Kurosaki Ichigo. Of course. Simple and impetuous, both of them. Yet they dared to look him in the eye and accuse him of being in the wrong. And for whatever reason—perhaps it was just the unshakeable emotion in their eyes—Byakuya found himself uneasy, doubting. Could there truly be another way to live one's life?

No, of course not. Perhaps there were exceptions, for commoners, maybe. But not for nobles. Especially not for Byakuya. Yes, he'd been like them once. Passionate, foolhardy. He too had loved. Perhaps that was what was why Hitsugaya's eyes at that moment were even more bothersome than Kurosaki's. Kurosaki had fought for Rukia as a friend; Hitsugaya was compelled by love. His eyes…it wasn't just Kurosaki's Byakuya had recognized…it was his past self's as well. When all he saw was Hisana and nothing else came before his love.

Byakuya felt his lips thin. But the world was not so kind nor simple, it had some very harsh realities. This affair in the tenth division would not last. It didn't matter how deep their love ran, there were greater forces in existence than that of mere feelings. As with Kurosaki, he'd intended to educate the younger starry-eyed captain. Kurosaki was a fool, but he was just an insignificant ryoka. Hitsugaya, on the other hand, was a captain of the Gotei 13, and it was utterly unbecoming of him to carry on like this. But, as with Kurosaki, Byakuya was entirely unsuccessful. His words had bounced off the young captain, and instead of disdain, Byakuya had felt…an envious satisfaction. And when Hitsugaya had (very indelicately) brought up his treatment of Rukia when everyone else had politely forgotten it, Byakuya again only felt reassured. A man driven by his convictions would indeed watch over Rukia and Renji better than a man simply following orders. He knew his sister would be well cared for. That was probably it. Nothing more.

Convinced, he'd ended the confrontation. If it had continued, that strange envy and doubt, would grow and eventually irritate him…not that that was the real reason he didn't want to discuss the matter any further. No, he just didn't want to bring himself down to Hitsugaya's level and come to blows over something so petty.

Plus he'd felt the reiatsu of the woman. He hadn't really seen the two of them together before. He was vaguely aware that they acted very differently than most captains and lieutenants, and he'd witnessed Hitsugaya yelling at her while she laughed. Back then, he'd assumed it was just a captain struggling with a troublesome lieutenant, like Soi Fon and Omaeda. Now, as he watched them, Byakuya again thought perhaps he hadn't been observant enough.

Hitsugaya still yelled while Matsumoto still giggled like an airhead. But…there was more to it. There was something intangible in their dialogue, something more than the words they exchanged aloud. They both understood it very well. And they derived true pleasure from it. Byakuya couldn't even deny the envy he felt at such happiness. He'd never been able to understand Hisana like that. She'd always been so far from him, her heart and eyes turned outwards searching for her little sister. But that was love. Sometimes it was unrequited, and Byakuya had always treasured the time he shared with his wife, regardless.

But he couldn't help wondering, what if she had returned his love? Would they have been like that?

"Hey, Byakuya," Kyoraku said, coming up behind the noble and interrupting his thoughts. "What was that all about, pushing Shiro-chan's buttons like that?"

"Hn, your actions last night were just as provocative." Byakuya spun on his heel and headed back towards his headquarters. "I just wanted to confirm his feelings."

"Eh?" Kyoraku frowned, but Ukitake smiled.

"They're a rather nice couple, aren't they? I have to admit, I was surprised at first at some of their decisions. Neither Hitsugaya-taichou nor Rangiku-san are exactly conventional officers. But, it's good to be a little different, sometimes." He heaved a loud, sentimental sigh. "Ahhh, I've been around for centuries and I can tell you, you could live out your entire life in Soul Society and not experience a love like that."

Kyoraku was smiling too now, which inwardly displeased Byakuya. "True, true. Seeing the two of them like that…it can make one jealous."

"What are you suggesting, Kyoraku?" Byakuya asked coldly.

"Nothing, nothing! What makes you think I'm suggesting anything?"

"Well, Kuchiki-taichou has experienced something similar already." Ukitake stepped closer to his friend. "Do they remind you of your own love at all, Kuchiki-taichou?"

"Don't pretend you know my thoughts, Ukitake." Byakuya shunpoed away.

Ukitake gave a small chuckle and shook his head. "These youngsters think they're so mysterious, when really, they're all too transparent."

"Isn't that the truth," Kyoraku grunted, scratching his stubbly chin. "And they always act as if love were something to be ashamed of, when they should bare it proudly." He made a pitiful face. "If only my Nanao-chan could realize this!"

"Patience, old friend," Ukitake laughed. "These things take time, you know."