I DON'T OWN BLEACH
Beta work By ChillyRaven. Thanks so much!!!
Just a reminder. I have a new story uploaded. "A Different Kind of Favor." Please give it a try^^ Please don't stop reviewing!!! Reviews on the last chapter of The favor was kinda low, I hope you are still finding the story fun and romantic.
"A man is not complete until he has seen the baby he has made." Sammy Davis, Jr.
"I'm here what's the problem?"
"This." Renji lifts the golden scroll up and tugs on the long red ribbon. "It's the annual Captain's dinner party."
"I don't see-" Ichigo stops reading mid-sentence with a panic stricken face. "Shit!"
"What are you going to do?"
"No choice." Ichigo grabs Renji and heads toward the Kuchiki manor. "Make asses of ourselves."
"Why is it plural? You make an ass of yourself!" Renji grumbles being while dragged across the floor by his collar. "Leave me out of it!"
Chapter 21; All about the baby...
Sitting down at the long ornately decorated dinner table, Ichigo leans back and nods to Renji. They succeeded in sandwiching Byakuya into sitting between them. That's the first step in a three part plan to avoid exposing her to anything dangerous. Including a list of things pregnant women can not eat, or do. A huge thumbs up for operation; 'Protecting the Pea and the Pod.'
The raven haired noble not wanting to make a scene sat down in her chair concealing her anxiety with a cool exterior. Over the past few weeks Ichigo has managed to show up practically everywhere she goes. He asks cryptic questions about her eating and then gives her an orange. She can logically assume he has suffered some sort of overload caused by too much sex or this is how he shows his devotion for her and screws it up horribly. Either way Byakuya wasn't going to say anything to him. For one, the sex is amazing, and two even though the attention is bothersome... he is too damn cute to yell at.
Ichigo and the rest of the captains stand as Yamamoto walks in and takes his place at the front of the table. As soon as his cane taps the floor Ichigo, along with the rest of the captains, sit down. The dinner service begins shortly and the food is brought out quickly. Ichigo watches in shock as a plate of sushi is placed in front of Byakuya. "Raw fish is on the list!"
Ichigo leans over to her plate stuffs all three pieces in his mouth chewing furiously. "Hmm, pretty good!" He mumbles trying not to choke when his nose suddenly feels on fire.
"Ichigo... those have wasabi in them." Byakuya's eyes narrow watching his face contort from the spicy food. "I'm hungry, can I have your plate?"
Ichigo gulps down a full glass of water before handing Byakuya his portion of sushi. "What do I do?"
Byakuya smiles warmly at him reaching out to take the small white dish. Saying a silent prayer hoping that he will calm himself enough to get through dinner without embarrassing himself and her. "Thank you, Ichigo."
"She's so pretty." Ichigo dreamily smiles back at her fighting a blush on his cheeks. "Y-You are welcome, Byakuya."
No sooner had Byakuya's hand touched the gold rimmed edge, Renji stood up on her left and cleared his throat. The action snaps Ichigo out of his day dream and he promptly drops the plate on the floor causing it the shatter into pieces. Everyone turns to see Ichigo looking like a cat with it's tail on fire and Byakuya's eyes slide shut. "Oh shit... she is pissed."
Byakuya shakes her head at Ichigo."All those years of furrowing his eyebrows have finally took their toll and cut off the oxygen supply to his brain."Sighing she turns toward Ukitake who is sitting across from her giving Yachiru a large star-shaped lollipop from his haori.
"Yay! It's like a princess wand and candy all in the same package!" Yachiru squeals in happiness strapping on her roller blades. She jumps up twirling around the table weaving around the terrified servants with glee. "Captain Shiro-chan is a genius!"
"Oh, no no." Ukitake blushes as she happily zooms across the floor ignoring the annoyed glances from Hitsugaya. "Would you like a lollipop too Captain Hitsugaya?" Ukitake's hand reaches inside his haori to grab another stashed wand.
"N-No thank you captain Ukitake." Toshiro mumbles struggling not to blush from the strange gesture and at Juushiro's overly sweet expression. "I should have skipped out on this and took Karin ice skating. Freaky old people!"
Byakuya breathes a sigh of relief, at least Ichigo isn't the only one acting like a fool. Her deep blue eyes flick over to Matsumoto who stops chugging down a drink long enough to wink and grin wide at her. "What's with her? Come to think of it, all the women have been smiling at me lately. Do I have something in my teeth?" She grabs a napkin scrubbing at the front of her teeth.
"Did you get enough to eat?" Ichigo produces an orange and begins peeling away the thick skin.
"Not another orange!"
"Awww!" Byakuya's head swishes over hearing Matsumoto and Isane Kotetsu's voices. She watches them separate to opposite sides of the room with large smiles. Isane whispers something in Unohana's ear, and to Byakuya's dismay the captain of the fourth division's eyes open meeting hers briefly then close in a warm grin.
"Here ya go, a nice fresh orange." Ichigo sets the round fruit on her plate with a gleam in his eye. He notices her frown reluctantly at the orange. "Please for me?" He relaxes the furrow of his brow curling up his lips.
"Damn it! He knows I can't say no to that face." Snatching the orange from her plate she starts eating it refusing to look around the table at anyone else.
Ichigo content with her eating something healthy reaches for his glass of water when he sees a servant set a cup and jar of warm sake in front of Byakuya. "Oh hell no." Ichigo hits Renji with a dinner roll flicking his head.
"Hey is that Rukia being chased by Kon?" Renji points out the window getting Byakuya's attention away from the table.
"Nee-san!" Ichigo mutters from a closed mouth.
"Rukia is in trouble?" Byakuya turns away staring out the window finding only a butterfly fluttering by.
Ichigo chugs down the jar of sake in three fast gulps returning it to the table before she notices. "I may not live through this dinner! My throat is melting!" Ichigo silently gags grasping for a glass of water when he glances at Yamamoto pulling out a smoking pipe.
Crack! The glass in his hand crackles under the slight squeezing. "My...baby is breathing this air you old fart." Ichigo watches in horror as Yama-jii lifts a match to light his pipe. Renji shoots him a glare and Ichigo takes a deep breath dropping his napkin on the floor."Oh, I dropped my napkin." He leans over just as the flames reach the pipe and exhales sharply blowing out the match.
Yama-jii's left eye opens slowly to Ichigo's wondering eyes. "Fuck! He is going to charbroil my ass."
He tries to light it again his left eye following Ichigo's orange head as he walks around the chair. The match is lit moving toward the pipe and once again Ichigo interferes. This time by popping his napkin quickly to suffocate the flame. Yama-jii snatches away the napkin giving Ichigo a chilling evil eye.
Ichigo, receiving the silent warning plops back in the chair fighting a sudden dizzy spell. A new jar of sake is set in front of Byakuya and Ichigo completely ignoring any kind of distraction picks it up and drains it. His world begins to twirl. "Byakuya... is so pretty." He mumbles swigging the last of the alcohol.
Yama-jii takes the opportunity to light another match. Ichigo reacts quickly in his fuzzy sake induced state and blows at the match sending a small flame shooting across Yama-jii's face. Both of Yama-jii's eye open.
"Ichigo! What are you doing!" Byakuya yanks him by the arm. Everyone freezes in shock watching Ichigo's head drop to Byakuya's lap.
"Hehe." Kenpachi chortles. "And I thought this would be boring."
"I'm protecting my babies!" He replies, his speech slurring as his arm circle her waist. "I wuv my wife." He rubs his face against her belly.
"Awwww." The ladies in the room all sigh at the scene.
"What are you talking about?!" Byakuya lifts him off her lap trying to get a proper answer. He refuses to move clutching to the chair and holding them both in place. "Ichigo!"
"Yama-jii gets caught on fire, Ichigo-kun gets smashed and announces he knocked-up his wife." Shunsui laughs draining another cup of sake. "This is the best party ever!"
"My wife! My baby damn it!" He sits up quickly pointing his hand at the stunned faces at the table. "Mine."
"To the baby!" Shunsui exclaims grins lifting his glass for a toast.
"Hell yes!" Ichigo grabs Yama-jii's sake and gulps it down. Renji slowly starts to make his way to the exit sensing the coming wrath of Byakuya.
"Hell No! I am not pregnant!" Byakuya stands up with a red face and stomps to the door passing a pale faced Renji.
"Yes you are! We heard Ichigo tell Renji." Matsumoto smacks at her knee then falling off her chair.
"Renji..." Byakuya grits her teeth together turning to frown at Renji.
"Nonono! Ichigo told me you were." Renji waves his hands in a panic.
"Oi?" Everyone turns to see Ichigo crashing into the dinner table blacking out.
"Ooooh, Icchi fell down." Yachiru jumps up to the table kicking at Ichigo's head. "I know!" Yachiru waves around her lollipop then cracks him on the head with it. Blood trickles down his forehead. "Oh no, I think I used too much magical girl powers."
Hey all! Thanks for the reviews! I hope you are all still enjoying the story. Thanks Chilly for staying up late with me to edit this. I'm sooo tired ; ; Drop me a review if you like^^ the 350th reviewer gets a nice reward! All My Love Fuzzi