Knowing the Past, Writing the Future Chapter 15

Chapter 15 – Protecting the family

Chapter's Music – The Fantasy and A Modern Myth by 30 Seconds to Mars

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The moon was shining over her long hair, darkening it to a brownish color. She moved her arm absently and felt cold sheets under her searching fingers. The woman opened her eyes, looking for her husband's form. He was nowhere in sight and she changed to a sitting position, slowly. Her chest still hurt, even if her baby erased all the poison in that hollow's stinger from her body and rejected part of her injuries; it wasn't enough to close the gash totally. Her bandages were keeping her chest from bleeding, while she waited for her reiatsu to be stable again and let her heal it. Unohana tried to heal her, but Orihime refused: it was like a remembrance of how close she was of losing everything and she wanted to feel those lingering pains until she was able of healing herself.

She got up, noticing a strip of light coming from the sliding door that connected with the garden in the back of Rukia and Renji's house. Opening it totally and exiting the room, she saw a dark frame with its back to her, observing the small lake with orange and blue fishes.

"Can't you sleep?" she wondered, massaging his shoulders. He relaxed under her hands and sighed deeply.

"No…" Ichigo whispered, tensing again. "I keep seeing you lying there; pale, without moving, bloody…" he cut himself, before his mind could be held hostage under those dark thoughts. Even being sleepless for two nights, observing Orihime sleep countless hours, like she haven't seen a futon in weeks, he couldn't erase those moments from his memory and he doubted he could ever do that. He felt Orihime's arms snake around his torso and her body cuddle against his back and it was the first time he noticed the almost imperceptible bump. Her hands were over his heart and she could feel the beating beneath her fingers. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply into his scent.

"Now I'm the one that has to reassure you of my health, right?" she murmured, against his clothes. He chuckled quietly and the woman smiled; it was always him who had to tranquilize her about his wellbeing. When he would come home from a fight with a hollow or a danger operation as an investigator, she would hover over him until she could see every inch of his body to make sure he wasn't being reckless about any injure he might have. Ichigo would say it was because she wanted to see him naked, but she would always ignore his words. And now, the positions were reverting and Ichigo finally realized how traumatic it must have been for her seeing him lying dead in Hueco Mundo.

"Ichigo…" she called, after some moments of silence.

He turned his head partially and tried to look at her, but the only thing he saw was the top of her head.

"I'm sorry…" she said in a remorsefully tone.

"About what?"

"I broke my promise, I thought you would be mad about that…" Orihime confesseed, finally looking up and connecting her eyes with his.

"Yes, I'm seriously mad!" Ichigo confirmed with a frown, to the next second soften his expression. "I'm mad because you almost took away the most important thing in my life!" and he pointed to her face. "How do you think I would feel if I really lost you? And that's why you have to keep that promise from now on!" he declared.

"I will keep the baby and myself safe, but I can't just stand aside and watch you get hurt and suffer… What kind of human being would that make of me? As long as I keep breathing, and apparently even after that, I will always come back to you, but don't ask me to watch my husband being mauled by hollows!" Orihime pronounced with perseverance.

"Okay, I'm not asking that for the rest of your life, but at least for the next… Wait, how long have you been pregnant?" Ichigo asked, realizing that Orihime never told him that.

"According to Unohana, when she spoke with me in Shunsui-san's house, it must be two or three months, since I'm normally thin she doesn't know how long it could have been and I… really don't remember when was my last… you know…" Orihime said, flushed. Even if she was married to Ichigo for a long time, there were certain things that she could only talk with other girls.

"So, you might have been pregnant for almost three months? Orihime, please, just for once: listen to me and don't do anything reckless, for me and our baby! Now I have two things to protect at all costs, even if the baby is a princess like her mommy or a punk like his father, so don't make my job harder, alright?" Ichigo pleaded, with his big brown eyes caging Orihime under his control. She nodded and sighed, defeated. She knew he was right, but staying at home, while he ran away to fight with hollows would be so damn hard for her!

He nodded, happily, and turned around to look again at the fishes, while the woman buried her nose in his clothes, trying to get intoxicated with his chocolate-like scent.

"Come inside. It's getting cold and I want to snuggle with my mother hen-like husband…" she said, turning him around to look into his eyes. He nodded and let her guide him back into the house.

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Ichigo was awake, watching Orihime sleep when the plan he was forming in his mind for part of the night, finally made him step out of the futon. He rearranged the covers around Orihime and kissed her hair, hoping that she wouldn't be too mad with him when he returned.

The moon was still high in the sky. He didn't know what time was it, but it couldn't be more than three in the morning. Walking down the path that leaded to the exit of Seireitei, Ichigo was thinking about what he had to do. He recalled what the hollow he fought said and now, he knew what he meant with those words. He also knew that the hollow that injured Orihime was targeting her specifically, since he ran away after defeating her and if he knew she was still alive, there was a strong possibility of him coming back and try again. So, for Orihime and their baby's safety, he had to make sure that that monster wouldn't walk through this land any day longer. Just like he said to her earlier, now he had two things he would die to protect. He just hoped it wasn't the case this time…

"Running to kill yourself?" someone asked in scoffing tone.

Ichigo looked around, with a scowl in place, knowing whose voice was that.

"You really like to hide yourself, don't you?" Ichigo replied, in a bored tone, when Grimmjow jumped right in front of him.

The arrancar ignored his reply and instead, observed him with his arms crossed.

"So, I have things to do and I bet you have another person to annoy…" Ichigo said, passing him without giving him a glance. He wished Orihime was there to see how polite he was being, well, the most polite he could be to someone like Grimmjow Jeagerjaques, but then, if she was there he would be probably being scolded for sneaking out without her knowledge.

"That's a pity; she just got back from the death and is going to be a widow in a few hours…" Grimmjow commented, leaning against a tree. Ichigo scowled and crossed his arms.

"I'm not going to die; I'm just going to protect my family once and for all!" Ichigo replied, with a fire in his eyes that complemented the certainty in his voice.

Grimmjow tsked and narrowed his eyes, seeing Ichigo walk away with a new energy in his steps.

"Are you going to follow him?" a female voice asked and Nell jumped from the tree, looking pointedly at Grimmjow.

"No!" he answered, without looking at her. She made a sarcastic sound and punched him in the shoulder.

"Did you forget what Urahara asked us? Did you forget that it was him who interceded with the Commander to let us stay here? As a "proof of faith, the opposite you did with us"?" Nell said, quoting Urahara's words to Yamamoto. "Or do you want to get back to Hueco Mundo and live with those brainless hollows? For what I remember you didn't enjoy that set very much…" she knew which buttons to push and she was pushing the right ones in that moment.

"Are you going to stay with the others humans?" Grimmjow asked, with such a deep frown that Nell thought he would never be able of even his face again. She nodded and he stepped away from the tree.

"You own me big time! And besides, it will be cool saving that useless' ass and bring him by his ear!" Grimmjow said, with a grin deforming his face, as he imagined the scene with Ichigo's yelps of pain being music to his own ears. Oh, sweet revenge…



"Thank you, for sending him…" a masculine voice said, from the shadows, when Nelliel returned to her guarding position. She smiled, seeing the man walk out of the dark and nodded.

"You're welcome, Sado Yasutora, I believe it will do them good, fighting alongside, having to trust each other... " and after some moments of silence, she spoke again. "I know why you are still here and not beside them…" Nell said, eyeing the house in front of her.

"I'm sorry if I'm disdaining your power, but I can't let her here… If something happens again… I couldn't forgive myself if I wasn't there... Ichigo and I made a promise when he told me he would ask her to marry him: if something happened to him, I would protect her no matter what, not because we didn't trust her powers, but because she needs to be happy! And with that child on the way, she needs that more than ever…" he replied, putting his hands on his pockets in an awkward way. Normally, he wasn't a person to talk that much, but he had to make the arrancar understand his reasoning, because he couldn't bear anyone thinking that he didn't worry or care about Ichigo, his brother in everything except blood. He made a promise and he would give his life to honor that truce! Because, if a man couldn't keep his honor, what else would he have?

So, what do you think? Any ideas about the bad guy? Please, review, my friends!