Congratulations! It's a…Ichigo?!
Chapter 2
IchigoXUnohana
Disclaimer: I don't own bleach.
Inside Captain Unohana….
Ichigo POV
"Where…where am I?" Ichigo asked. He tried to open his eyes but all he could see was blackness. He tried to move but found that he couldn't. He could hear voices but they sounded muffled, like they were passing through several barriers. The only real sense that remained to Ichigo was his sense of touch, feeling warmth like he'd never known. All around him it felt like he was being surrounded by warm, snug heat.
"Wait…I remember now…I was fighting Byakuya, then Captain Aizen…then he beat me, then… then what?" He tried to remember what happened next. He knew that Aizen hit him with something, and then pain like he'd never experienced; like every cell in his body was being pulled apart then… nothing….
"What happened to me? Am I…dead?"
A voice came in, from where Ichigo couldn't figure out. It wasn't Zangetsu's voice. It was someone he'd never heard before.
"Far from it, Ichigo."
Squad 4 Medical Center: Unohana's Room
Unohana POV
"Far from it, Ichigo," Unohana said to the voice in her head. It was startling at first when she heard it. It certainly wasn't Minazuki. Only after she'd heard that last sentence did she realize she was in contact with Ichigo's consciousness. "Please calm down, Ichigo. It feels weird for me when you are in distress."
"Wait, what do you mean "it feels weird for you", Lady?"
Unohana frowned. "My name is not "Lady", Ichigo."
"Ok, then who are you? And why can't I move or see anything?"
"As for whom: I'm Retsu Unohana, Captain of Squad 4."
"Oh. Ok then, I'm Ichigo Kurosaki. I'd say it's nice to meet you but I have no idea where I am."
Unohana's frown lifted due to Ichigo's cordialness. 'At least the boy had some manners at least,' she noted. "This is going to be hard to take in but… right now you're inside of me."
"…Come again?"
Unohana could understand Ichigo's confusion and elaborated. "When Souske Aizen left, he assaulted you with a forbidden Kido spell. The spell was meant to tear your reishi body apart and insert you into a container. I was able to move your young friend out of the way before she became the container, but ended up being your vessel myself."
Ichigo's distress was apparent, feeling it like a shockwave in her mind. "So I…I don't have a body anymore?" She could hear the fear that was apparent in the boy's thoughts and felt sorry for Ichigo. "What am I supposed to do now? Can't you fix this?"
Unohana looked down at her pregnant belly, currently containing the substitute in fetal form. "Not quite. Aizen didn't do the spell properly so there were…complications. Under normal circumstances, you'd just be a disembodied consciousness inside my head and nothing more. But…"
"But what?"
"I'm curious, Ichigo. Can you hear or feel anything?" she asked.
"Um…yes and no? I can't really see anything and everything sounds muffled except for your voice, but I do feel…um…heat."
"About that…the spell was done incorrectly, so instead of just being a voice in my head, my body took your reishi and reformed your body inside my womb."
"…So…so I'm…" Ichigo was speechless at what she was saying. "YOU'RE PREGNANT WITH ME?!"
She rubbed her belly and sighed. The realization that she was about to become a mother hit her and she didn't quite know if she could handle it or not. "Yes," she weakly said.
"Oh…" Ichigo felt disheartened at the notion of what had happened to him. "Is…is there nothing you or the others can do?"
"That remains to be seen. Captain Kurotsuchi and several others are sifting through the archives trying to locate any record of this ever happening. Also, I believe Lady Yoruichi left to enlist the aid from your mentor, Kisuke Urahara. For now, you should try to relax. Like I said, when you feel distress or anxiety I feel it too."
The conversation between them was interrupted when Orihime and Rukia opened the door. "Um, Captain Unohana? Who are you talking to?" Rukia asked politely. "We heard you talking but there's nobody else here so we came to see if you were alright."
Unohana smiled at the two, rubbing her pregnant belly. "Well, yes and no. I was just explaining the situation with your dear friend, Ichigo."
Orihime gasped. "You mean-"
"Yes. Ichigo's fully aware despite his body reforming as a fetus."
While Orihime was ecstatic to hear that Ichigo was alive (somewhat), Rukia was confused. "Wait, that makes zero sense, Captain Unohana. How can Ichigo be aware when his brain's now reduced to that of a baby's? He shouldn't be able to form thoughts, let alone be able to speak with you."
Looking back down at her belly, Unohana thought about it for a minute. "Hmm, perhaps it's a side effect of the kido. While his body's reduced to a fetus, his mind's perfectly intact. That was what the kido's original technique was supposed to do, so in a way it makes sense even when it doesn't in other ways."
"Oh," Orihime nodded. Leaning her face forward, she looked up at the pregnant captain. "Um…can I?"
Unohana smiled warmly at the orangette. "Go ahead. He's your friend after all."
Smiling in thanks, Orihime turned her head and pressed an ear to Unohana's belly, closing her eyes. After concentrating for a moment, Orihime could feel Ichigo's presence from within the woman, like a small ember deep inside her. "He's so small…" she said with a hint of sadness. Unohana could see hurt in her eyes. Hurt from what, she couldn't say. "Will he be alright?" Orihime asked looking up.
"He's ok for now. Scared, but ok," Unohana answered. Rukia's eyebrow rose. A scared Ichigo? Now that was a new one, although given the current circumstance that was to be expected. "Orihime. We should leave Captain Unohana alone to rest for now."
"Oh, ok." Orihime looked sad to leave Ichigo right now but knew she had a point. Putting an ear back onto Unohana's belly, Orihime spoke out loud to the baby Ichigo inside. "Don't worry, Ichigo. We'll have you back to normal…somehow…."
Unohana watched them leave, feeling curious about the human healer. "She certainly cares a great deal about you, Ichigo. It's quite touching how much concern she shows for you."
Ichigo was confused. "Wait, what do you mean? Of course she'd be concerned. She's my friend."
Unohana covered her hand so her giggle wouldn't be audible. 'He doesn't even realize? That's so cute!' Chuckling, Unohana rubbed her belly, sitting up. "Still though, don't you think you should feel at least a little bit ashamed, Ichigo?"
"What do you mean?"
Unohana smiled as she slipped on her haori, adjusting it so that her stomach didn't look so prominent. "You're already inside a woman and you never even bought me dinner. Shame on you!" she teased. She laughed when she felt Ichigo's embarrassment and his quick apology. "Don't worry, Ichigo. I'm only joking. But for now, let's try to get along. We'll be stuck like this for a while, after all."
Ichigo readily agreed, though as Unohana began to walk he felt weird, feeling her body move around him. "Um…what's happening?"
"I'm heading for the Head-Captain's. Rukia handed me a message that said that all available captains are needed so I'm heading there. Try not to speak, Ichigo. You need to rest too."
Ichigo pipped down in agreement, drifting to sleep as Captain Unohana walked on….
To Be Continued….
