Grimmjow held Nami close to him but her naked body was not having its usual effect on him. He was thinking about the upcoming mission. In a few hours, he would be on an airplane bound for the United States where they would infiltrate the lab and seize everything they could. What files, hybrids, and scientists not present and seized at the first strike would be picked up by a sweeper team later. He tried to troubleshoot every possible scenario of what could go wrong in his head. There had to be a solution for any problem or unexpected difficulty that could arise. He had to get back home alive and in one piece. He had too much to lose. Pulling Nami closer, he kissed her on the forehead.

"Are you that worried?" she asked as if she knew what he was thinking. "If you are, I understand. I am too."

"Misery loves company, huh?" he murmured, smiling at her as she rolled on top of him.

"I suppose so," she rejoined, kissing him briefly on the lips. She sighed as his fingers slid up her back and his lips pressed against the hollow at the bottom of her neck.

"Want to get lost in a wonderful dream with me for a while?" he inquired, trailing kisses across her collarbone. He was suddenly over his lack of interest in his naked wife. Right now he wanted to be as close to her as possible.

"Definitely," she answered, pulling his mouth to hers. Raising her hips, she waited for him to get himself positioned correctly under her so she could slide down on top of him.

"Sweetheart, I love you," he whispered, moving her body slowly with his hands on her hips.

"I love you too. Promise you'll come home to me," she begged, gazing into his eyes that reflected the low light from the shafts of moonlight illuminating the room with a soft blue glow.

"I will be back. Don't worry. Nothing can keep me from you," he murmured, holding her intense gaze. He sped up the movements of his hips when the pure physical delight and emotional comfort her body was bringing to him infiltrated every nerve.

"Oh, Grimmy," Nami whispered, lowering her forehead against his lips as she rocked her hips against his to move him inside of her.

Grimmjow held onto her, concentrating on the unadulterated pleasure she sent spiralling through his body. She was his everything. He loved her for many reasons but she had been the one person who loved him first when he felt so incredibly unlovable. After giving him her heart and her life, she gave him three of the most incredible gifts a man could ever ask for. He could not live without her, and he had no intention of making her live without him.

"Nami," he gasped, pressing his lips against her chest over her heart.

Nami cried out in ecstasy as her body shuddered on top of him from her breathtaking orgasm. Her breath was coming in loud inhales and her inner muscles contracted around him which drew him to his climax. She held onto him, whispering his name and how much she loved him as he released inside of her with a choking sound to keep from yelling out from the pleasure. Thankful for the cover of darkness, she bowed her head into the shadows to keep him from seeing the tears in her eyes.

The moon had disappeared and so had the stars. Dawn would be coming soon which would signal the time for his flight to leave.

"Nami, I have to - "

"I know." She moved off of him, lying with her back to him so he could not see her crying. It was time for him to get ready.

"Come with me," Grimmjow requested, standing beside the bed. He wanted her to join him in the shower so he would not miss one second of their dwindling minutes together.

"But if I do, you will make love to me again. We'll make you late." She sat up and took his hand anyway. She passively allowed him to pull her to her feet then take her in his arms to carry her to the bathroom.

"So what if we do? That plane can't leave the ground until I'm on it. Let's go."

~...~

The children had awakened and dressed before gathering in the sitting room while their parents showered and dressed. They had a little time to say their emotional good-byes to their father and spend a few last minutes with him. They were completely aware of the danger of the mission that awaited him. The whole family rode in silence to the airstrip where everyone else was waiting. The Commander General did not seem to notice they were late as he stood alone, patiently waiting until all pertinent individuals were present. General Muguruma would be staying behind to maintain Command of the base while the Major General would be taking part in the mission himself. Zaraki looked as if he were going to blow a gasket due to Grimmjow's tardiness as he stood beside the plane at attention with his son, who had dressed in his military uniform for the occasion, stood beside him. Yusei and Hisoka were too upset by their own father leaving to give a damn about the presence of their nemesis, Takeshi Zaraki who stared at them with unveiled hatred. However, when his hate filled black eyes landed on the puffy, tear-stained face of Mitsuhime, his expression changed drastically. Suddenly he appeared as if he might cry himself until his father elbowed him with a painful jab to the ribs to break him out of it. Inside the huge cargo plane waited the seven hybrids they had genetically engineered in the military lab in addition to the three refugees that had found their way to the base and would be taking part in the maneuver.

Grimmjow took Nami into his arms, keeping the kiss short and sweet as not to offend or embarrass his children. He hugged each child in turn next. It brought tears to his eyes when Hisoka had to peel the frantic, bawling Mitsuhime from around his waist. Quickly turning away, he strode toward the airplane purposefully. If he dared to turn back to look at any of them, he might abort the mission entirely and risk getting court marshalled to stay with his family.

Nami felt Yusei's strong arms go around her waist and pull her close as the airplane engine began to hum then grew to a roar when the engine came to full throttle before preparing to take off. She leaned against him when her legs unexpectedly weakened upon the plane rolling down the runway.

"Mom?" he inquired, concern making his voice break.

"I'm okay, baby," she assured him, feeling anything but okay. Nami heard a sound, a distinct whistle and screech that was not from the plane as the wheels left the ground. Looking over at General Muguruma, she could tell that he had heard it too because his gray head was moving back and forth methodically as he scanned the area. There was a stifled boom then a yellow light streaked through the air from the ground. "General! There!"

"Oh, god no!" he muttered, grabbing the radio on his side. "Warn that plane!" he yelled into radio, but it was too late.

The people on the tarmac watched in disbelief as the yellow light that looked like flare contacted the airplane and a deafening explosion sounded. They all hit the pavement, covering their ears and trying to shield each other from the debris after the side of the plane burst open from the missile that had hit it. Yusei was covering Nami and Hisoka was covering Mitsuhime. Someone else had saved them all by using his body to protect the family from the shock of the blast that ripped a hole in airplane.

"Takeshi!" Mitsu gasped, grabbing the lapels of his uniform to shake him. She screamed his name again when he did not respond verbally and his closed eyes did not open.

"No," Nami whispered, unable to get past rising to her hands and knees as she stared at the burning wreckage that was on the runaway several hundred yards from them. "No, no, no, NO!"

The fire engines and ambulances that had been waiting in the area just as a safety precaution for the take off, moved past them at a high rate of speed in the direction of the crashed plane that had been blown out of the sky. Yusei took off toward the accident scene, easily leaving his larger bulkier brother behind.

"Run, Rabbit, RUN!" Mitsu screamed at her brother. When the unconscious boy in her arms stirred from her loud voice, she looked down and sighed in relief to see he was staring up at her.

If Nami had not been so worried about her husband, she would have been terrified by the scene taking place next to her when Mitsuhime kissed Takeshi Zaraki - right on the lips. She barely noticed the medics who moved in to pick up Takeshi and the relieved Mitsuhime. Nami watched with shocked detachment as the Commander, Hana, and several other soldiers raced in the direction from which the missile had come. Apparently someone had been waiting in the high grass surrounding the airstrip with a missile launcher to take down the plane. Why had they not seen them? How had anyone been able to get that close to the base undetected?

Nami saw an orange head rise out of the golden brown grass that looked like wheat. If it had not been for the color of that hair she would not have recognized him. The hair reached all the way down to his waist and billowed out behind him in the strong wind that suddenly blew up from nowhere. Too shocked to emit a sound at the unexpected sight she beheld, her mouth dropped open in a silent scream while her eyes remained on the bony face with disturbing pointed teeth that reminded her of those in an alligator's mouth. She was not sure if was a mask or his actual face, but whatever it was, it was scary as hell. His usually tanned skin was now white like Ulquiorra's. What did they do at that lab to do this to their hybrids? His body seemed even more muscled and was mostly revealed since he was only wearing pants. His feet and hands bore a reptilian appearance with long digits that ended with dangerously sharp claws. Her sharp eyes watched every move as his clawed hand raised to his face to remove what must be a mask. Despite the distance, she could clearly see the golden yellow eyes set in black sclera.

"Ichigo," she gasped, recognizing his face despite the terrible changes. Standing to her feet, she swayed unsteadily. Her eyes moved across the horizon until they beheld the scene of the downed and burning plane in front of her. "You bastard, Ichigo."

~^..^~

Yusei dropped to his knees beside his father who was lying on his back with his right arm trapped beneath a heavy metal container that held some of the equipment for the mission. Other than his arm, he seemed mostly unharmed except for several scratches on his face. Hearing his father groan, he was somewhat relieved but it was only momentary until he really studied the position of the metal box. It seemed to be flat on the ground which meant his father's arm would be totally crushed. Trying not to panic, he was glad to see the medics and his brother arriving at the same time.

"Where's Mitsu?" Yusei asked, glancing around for her.

"In the ambulance with Takeshi," Hisoka answered swiftly, glancing around the box to survey the situation. "We need to move this."

"Well, duh, but how genius?" he snapped since his brother was stating the obvious.

"We have a pump and an air bag. If you could lift the edge..." The firefighter stopped talking as he watched the blue haired teenager grab the box and with a loud yell lift it up to push it away from his father. "That works too."

"Oh, god," Yusei groaned upon seeing the mangled bloody mess beneath. He immediately knew his father would lose his arm. Ripping the white t-shirt off his back, he wadded it up and pressed it against the bloody jagged wound to help stem the bleeding.

"We've got it," the female paramedic gently told him, elbowing him out of the way so they could take care of the man who suddenly yelled out in pain.

"Where's Mom?" Yusei inquired, staring his silent brother who was pointing into the field next to the airstrip. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Hisoka grabbed his brother's orange head to turn it in the right direction just in time for both of them to see their mother launch herself toward the...thing. He stared at his brother's orange hair that was just like that of the creature their mother had just jumped on and taken to the ground causing them to disappear in the tall grass.

"She's insane!" Yusei yelled attempting to take off but was held still by his brother's massive hand covering his head. He struggled under the weight, pulling at Hisoka's fingers. "Let me go, dammit! We have to help!"

"Don't you recognize him?" Hisoka asked, turning his brother's attention to him with a flick of the wrist.

"Should I?" He had indeed recognized the man-beast but did not want to admit it. His parents had never hidden the truth of his origins or who his 'real' father was from him.

"He's the sperm donor. He's your father." He knew his brother was irate when the carrot top dislodged his hand with a painful stinging slap.

"Not my father," he countered hotly, his tanned skin turning red with anger. "That's definitely our mother, idiot, now let's go!"

Thank you xfang-girlx for your help. It's always appreciated.