This was originally posted on FanLib for a contest I took part in recently, which is a large part of the reason why this took so long to finally get posted. Sorry for the delay, and I hope you enjoy this. School's starting again soon, so while I sincerely hope a delay like this won't happen again, I can't make any guarantees.

That said, have fun.

"Oi."

He wondered, but only for a moment, if there was any semblance of a possibility that Kurosaki Ichigo could be taught proper respect for the leaders of his order.

Yes, he'd been thrust into the shinigamis' world abruptly, and the most dangerous mission in Soul Society's history had been thrust upon him, but Hitsugaya had earned his rank, and found it decidedly irritating that some fifteen-year-old upstart felt the right to treat him like this.

It felt all too familiar.

Matsumoto, oblivious to her leader's thoughts (or at least actingoblivious; she was far more perceptive of peoples' moods than she let on), waved at the orange-headed boy and proceeded to show him the "newest addition" to the Tenth Division "family."

Ichigo chuckled, scratched behind the kitten's ears, and nodded. "Cute."

"Yeah, so you say," Hitsugaya muttered under his breath. "That thing is a parasite."

"I live with Kon. Don't talk to me about parasites."

Hitsugaya couldn't refute that logic.

"Toushirou wanted to be off home," Matsumoto said. "What did you need us for?"

Ichigo frowned. "I promised the girls I'd take 'em to the movies today, but Shinji's bein' a fuckin' asshole and I can't get 'im to leave me the hell alone. I gotta get training. They like you guys. I thought you might be able to go."

"If I refuse," Hitsugaya muttered, "you'll just use Yuzu to threaten me. Fine. But you owe me. I'm not a babysitter."

"...You aren't?"

The implication was not lost on Matsumoto.

Hitsugaya's scowl left his face as he watched her suddenly go into Predator Mode, and he chuckled as Ichigo sped off away from her and the various items from the surrounding area that she began launching at him.

"Come on, Toushirou! Cheer up! Have fun!"

"Oh, but I'm having fun..." Hitsugaya muttered. "I'm positively effervescent; can't you tell?"

Matsumoto gathered up the snacks and drinks she'd procured (most of which was for her; Hitsugaya wondered if she planned on giving any to Ichigo's sisters), rolling her eyes at him.

"It's no wonder you scowl so much, Toushirou. What's life for if you don't have fun with it? This is a chance to relax."

"Yes. Relax. That's the word I forgot. You know, Rangiku, I'm not paying Urahara for repairs when you pull a muscle trying to carry all that."

"As if her back wasn't straining enough as it is," Karin muttered.

Hitsugaya suddenly had to bite his lip to keep from bursting out laughing. Holding his hand over his mouth, he snickered madly, pointedly ignoring the sudden glare from his vice-captain.

"Watch your mouth, Missy," Matsumoto snapped. "I have no problem with hurting small children."

She turned her scathing eyes on her captain. "And you—"

"Am not a small child. Don't even go there. Come on, now. If you want to get to the movie on time, then get moving. You spent nearly a half-hour buying all that."

"We got here forty-five minutes early."

"And it's a good thing we did."

Hitsugaya started off down the hall, and Yuzu was quick to follow him. Matsumoto and Karin walked slower, Matsumoto glaring daggers into the girl's head, and Karin pointedly ignoring her because she knew it would make her angrier.

Might as well get some entertainment out of this, Karin thought.

Yuzu was practically skipping as they left the theater, giggling like some demented clown (something she'd picked up from her father, probably), and when she did stop and wait for them, she bounced from foot to foot, unable to contain her excitement, as if the movie hadn't even started yet, even though it was over, and the suspense was killing her.

"Wasn't that the best, Hitsugaya-niichan?" she asked, eyes glowing.

Hitsugaya raised an eyebrow, more than a little unnerved by the girl's tone, finding a threatening edge in it that just shouldn't have been there.

"Uh...yes. It was surprising, Yuzu. I...I enjoyed it immensely."

Yuzu giggled again, satisfied, and whirled around, pushing open the door and holding it open for an elderly couple walking in.

Glancing at Karin, he muttered, "I haven't found a bigger waste of time since trying to have a real conversation with your father..."

Karin snickered.

"Now, now, be nice. Isshin-san is just excitable. Some adults just don't like the idea of maturity."

"You talk as though you've met someone like that before," Hitsugaya said dryly, rolling his eyes.

"Are you insinuating something, Toushirou?"

"Not at all."

Matsumoto scowled, then smirked.

Hitsugaya yelled as the as-of-yet-unnamed kitten latched onto his head. "Hey! Get...get that thing off me! Where were you keeping i—Ow! Damn it!"

Matsumoto walked out of the theater with a smug look on her face. "When will you learn, Shiro-chan? Being childish is so much more entertaining."

When Ichigo found them a few minutes later to escort his sisters home, he stopped and stared at Hitsugaya, face scratched and hair disheveled.

"Uh...I don't think I want to ask how you managed to get yourself assaulted at a kid's movie."

"Would you like a slightly used vice-captain?" Hitsugaya grunted. "I accept cash or credit card. No checks, please."

He lifted the kitten by the scruff of the neck.

"Free cat with purchase."