Chapter 3: The Truth Inside
Jugram rested, just beneath consciousness, his hazy mind meandering through a mosaic of entangled memories. He flinched as Bazz-B's child voice echoed strangely around him.
"Come on! Get out of bed, Jugo. You think we're ever going to be strong enough to kill Ywach if we laze around all day? I don't think so. Move it!"
A shiver went through him as he Ywach's deeper, more compelling voice drowned out Bazz-B's.
"You are my other half..."
"Y-your majesty..." he moaned in his sleep.
Next to him, Bazz-B stirred and opened an eye. He studied Jugram's discomfited expression and shook his head, scowling.
"You need to forget him," Bazz-B chided his former friend, "He was bullshitting you. And anyway, he's dead, Jugo. He's gone."
Jugram's eyes slowly opened and struggled to focus. Bazz-B sat up beside him, leaning over him and checking his bandages.
"You hurting?" Bazz-B asked, "I can have Urahara come in and give you a pain block."
"B-bazz..." Jugram managed brokenly, "Why are you...here?"
He broke off, groaning as his head spun dizzily. Bazz-B gazed at him silently for a moment, then let out a huff of breath.
"Why am I here?" Bazz-B repeated, frowning, "I told you. I'm going to help you get well."
"But...I tried to kill you. Have you forgotten?" Jugram whispered hoarsely.
"Hell no, I haven't forgotten!" Bazz-B snapped, "Like I could forget you taking off my arm and almost cutting me in half. You owe me for that, by the way, and also for me losing sleep and having to drag your sorry ass all of the way here."
"Idiot!" Jugram panted, breaking out in a sweat from the effort of speaking.
"Take it easy," Bazz-B chided him, "You're going to make yourself pass out from straining to talk. Just sleep some more. I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to let you get away again. Look at the trouble you got yourself into by leaving me before."
Jugram fastened weary eyes on his for several painful moments, then closed them again. Bazz-B gave an approving sigh and laid down beside him, spread out on his back with his hands behind his head.
"When you feel better, we can go outside. It's kinda pretty here. We're in a pocket dimension and Urahara is the only way in or out, so don't get ideas about leaving. Don't think you can attack me again either. Your powers are under a seal, not just because the shinigamis don't trust you. You also got banged up really bad, so you can't be drawing in reiatsu until your body's in better shape. Just relax and focus on healing. We can deal with the rest later."
"Wh-what makes you so sure I want to resolve things with you?" Jugram whispered weakly.
"Huh," Bazz-B huffed, "Well, maybe it's the fact that the bastard king Ywach is dead. He's gone and you're alone. Really alone this time, Jugo. The shinigamis want your head and our guys will want answers. You probably can't count on either side to cut you a lot of slack. You need someone to stand beside you. And wasn't I there for you before?"
"You c-came to Wahrwelt to kill me!" Jugram accused him.
Bazz-B frowned and shook his head.
"I didn't come to kill you. I just recognized that by killing you I could kill Ywach's power. You cut me down and I admitted you were stronger than me. I lost because I underestimated you."
Jugram's eyes opened and fixed on Bazz-B's, evincing dark curiosity.
"And if I held the king's power now, would you kill me, Bazz?"
"Hey," Bazz-B snapped irritably, "the bastard's dead. Let's stop talking about him."
"But Bazz-B..."
"Shh," Bazz-B said, turning in the bed and placing his fingertips on the blonde quincy's lips, "Not another word. We didn't need to talk so much when we were kids, did we, Jugo?"
Jugram made a sound of surprise, but remained still as Bazz-B moved closer to him and curled up at his side.
"I know there's a lot of shit to go through," he yawned, "but you and I are both too beat up right now to get into it. Let's just forget about it for a while. The war is over. We're safe for the moment. All we need to do is get well. Let's concentrate on that, okay Jugo?"
Jugram gazed at him contemplatively for several long moments, then sighed in resignation and let the side of his face rest against Bazz-B's.
"That's better," Bazz-B said approvingly, "Get some sleep now."
XXXXXXXXXX
"Oh my kami, it's so good to be back here with you!" Ichigo groaned, collapsing onto Tetsuya's bare back and brushing his hair aside to get at the soft, pale skin along the side of his slender neck, "I missed you like crazy, Tetsuya. I was worried..."
"You were worried," Tetsuya mused, turning his head and frowning over a naked shoulder, "I was safe within the evacuation barrier most of the time, while you were up there somewhere above us, fighting the quincy king, himself. I was terrified, Ichigo."
Tetsuya rolled over and crawled into Ichigo's strong arms, seeking his lips for a bout of hot, wet kisses.
"I wasn't going to let that bastard win," Ichigo said solemnly, "I have a lot to protect."
Tetsuya blushed and caught his breath slightly at the words. He paused and looked down at the arm Ichigo had curled around his waist, considering his words carefully.
"We both do," Tetsuya said finally, "even more than you know."
Ichigo gave him a curious smile.
"What does that mean?" he asked, an idea beginning to dawn on him, "Tetsuya, are you trying to tell me something?"
Tetsuya blushed more fiercely and swallowed hard.
"Ichigo, you know that when I was a prisoner in Itamigiri, the ones who ran the prison also used us for illegal experiments."
"Yeah...?" Ichigo agreed, his smile fading, "And?"
"And...one of the experiments that they conducted was to see if some males could be used as breeders, in case there should ever be a shortage of noble females, as there was after the first quincy war."
Ichigo's eyes widened and he found himself lost for words.
"Tetsuya..."
"The experiment involved creating a space within a male soul's body, that could be filled with another male's reiatsu. The reiatsu was matured over time through small infusions from the father. When fully matured, the offspring's reiatsu would emerge and solidify into a shinigami child."
"Tetsuya, are you saying what I think you're saying?" Ichigo asked, excitement building in his golden brown eyes.
Tetsuya's blush deepened.
"I didn't tell you about the spirit chamber before, because it was supposed to be non-functional. But I think that when we were first together, just before the war began, the resonance between us was so strong that it caused our reiatsu to mingle and enter the chamber. And now...we are going to have a baby!"
"Holy crap!" Ichigo gasped, grabbing Tetsuya and pulling him close, "A baby, really?"
He paused and a worried look overtook his face.
"B-but what about Byakuya? I mean, he didn't get mad that we were dating, even when he found out I went to bed with you. But this..."
Tetsuya went quiet for a moment, looking up at the dark tan ceiling of the tent they laid in.
"I think he'll be concerned because the chamber is somewhat of an unknown. Add to that, we are unmarried, so the elders of our clans will probably be displeased."
Ichigo grinned.
"Then I'll just have to marry you before we let anyone know, ne?" he chuckled, nipping at Tetsuya's flushed lips, then kissing him more deeply, "I'll have Kisuke do it. He won't be worried Byakuya will kill him."
"M-maybe you should let me talk to at least Byakuya before we do anything drastic," Tetsuya suggested, "He will listen to me without getting angry."
"I don't know," Ichigo laughed, "He might get mad anyway when you tell him about this."
"Well, we didn't know that it was going to happen," Tetsuya reasoned, "The chamber was supposed to be broken. The healers just didn't remove it because they thought it would be too dangerous."
"Hey, you don't think it'll be dangerous for you to have this kid, do you?"
"Oh, I don't think so," Tetsuya answered, sitting up and looking down at his flat stomach as Ichigo sat up beside him, "The idea wasn't for the chamber to kill me. It was supposed to safeguard the ability to ensure offspring, even in case of the loss of our population of noble females."
"Oh, I guess. But we should get you to a healer anyway and have you checked out, just to be sure," Ichigo insisted.
"I agree. It's important for us to make sure everything is as it should be."
Tetsuya made a sound of dismay as Ichigo tackled him playfully and brought him down on his back again.
"Now, where were we?"
"I think we were right here," Tetsuya whispered, spreading his thighs invitingly.
Ichigo's fingers prepared him slowly, and he joined their bodies with equal care, looking down into Tetsuya's affectionate blue eyes.
"I'm really glad you're okay," Ichigo whispered gratefully, holding himself still and kissing Tetsuya gently, "I can't wait to see what our kid looks like."
"I feel the same," Tetsuya said breathlessly, surrendering easily as his handsome lover began to move.
XXXXXXXXXX
"Hey, thanks for the sake and warm place to sleep, Captain," Renji said, looking around the bedroom the two laid in, "I don't mind tents too much, but this bed is way more comfortable."
"We're lucky that this one escaped destruction," Byakuya said, studying the fine, dark wood furnishings and looking out into the gardens as he sipped at his drink, "It will be some time before all of the materials and crew are available to rebuild the rest of Kuchiki Manor."
"Yeah, those quincies made a real big mess," Renji huffed, swallowing a goodly amount of his serving of sake, "Too bad they escaped back into the shadows before we could make'em clean it up."
"We don't require anything from them," Byakuya said sleepily, "I am just as happy they are gone."
"Hmm, you don't worry about them coming back some years down the road and trying this again?" Renji asked, taking another swig of sake, then smiling as Byakuya poured him another measure.
"Of course they will," Byakuya reasoned, "They may be weak at the moment, but they have proven once that, not only are they resilient and resourceful, so they can survive and regrow their strength, they are also determined enemies who will continue to challenge us repeatedly. They will face much more resistance when they do return, as we learned much from our interactions with them this time."
"Yeah, a lot of that pretty painfully," Renji complained.
"That is why the sake is flowing freely tonight," Byakuya said, smirking.
"Is that so?" Renji asked, grinning, "I thought you were just using it to get me in bed with you tonight."
"It doesn't appear I would have needed sake to lure you," Byakuya observed, giving him an amused look, "It is the soft bed."
He caught his breath softly as Renji abandoned his drink and brought the surprised noble down onto his back on the pile of pillows.
"The bed is really soft," he agreed, "but that's not why I'm here."
He leaned down and captured Byakuya's lips in a slow, lingering kiss. Byakuya's dark grey eyes fastened on his and the fingers of one graceful hand rose to remove the hair tie from Renji's hair. The long strands tumbled down over his shoulders and tickled Byakuya's lovely face and throat teasingly.
"Hey, I heard there was a private party in here," Grimmjow growled softly from the doorway.
Torio hurried into the room from behind him and skidded to an awkward stop, panting softly.
"I'm s-sorry Lord Byakuya!" he apologized, "He just appeared out of nowhere and..."
"It is fine, Torio," Byakuya sighed, extracting himself from Renji's arms and sitting up, "Pour Grimmjow a drink, please."
"Sheesh," Renji complained, "That's a pretty sweet reception from a guy who just interrupted us while we were having some fun!"
"How could you be having fun?" Grimmjow asked, smirking and glancing at Byakuya, "I wasn't here yet."
He sat down on the end of the bed and took a swallow of sake.
"So, what's the nice treatment for, Captain Kuchiki?" he asked.
"You came back upon hearing of the danger to my kin, and you fought to defend them, even though you were not fully recovered," Byakuya reminded him, "I don't know what made you, a former enemy, react so strongly to danger to the noble clans."
"Yeah, well, there were women and cubs...erm...kids who the damned quincies were going to kill."
He swallowed the rest of his sake and held his cup out for Torio to refill.
"I don't know if Urahara filled you in on all of what happened in Hueco Mundo, but the killing didn't stop with just powerful hollows that they didn't want to draft into their army. They slaughtered the weaker ones and didn't even flinch at disposing of a lot of kid hollows. Now, even though it is our way for the more powerful to eat the weaker, there are rules and codes about not messing with little ones. We protect them and let them gain their powers, then they work their way up. We don't kill indiscriminately...not the ones of us with any sense of honor."
Grimmjow scowled as Renji gave a little snicker.
"What the hell?" he demanded.
"You've got a soft spot for kids!" the redhead accused him, "Big, tough Grimmjow is a real superhero!"
"Shut up, Red!" Grimmjow snapped, grabbing a pillow and hurling it at him.
Renji caught the pillow in mid-air and started to throw it, then noticed Byakuya's look of disapproval and dropped the pillow back onto the bed.
"I find it encouraging that you have in common with us a desire to protect the young," Byakuya said quietly, "You are welcome in my home, Grimmjow Jaegerjaques."
"Great home you've got here," Grimmjow laughed, "One room and a pretty destroyed kitchen. A garden with mucked up flowerbeds and a shit-pile of tents."
"That may be," Byakuya agreed, surprising the Sexta Espada, "but given that we have just returned from a difficult conflict, even this small room, a few bites of food prepared in my own damaged kitchen and a bit of sake that was hidden in my wine cellar is enough to bring me contentment. I am sure that it will bring you some comfort to return to your own home in Hueco Mundo, ne? Renji said that you had a warmly decorated cave and a few friends there."
"Oh, you mean the little ankle biter form of Nel and her two blundering buddies? A little hole in the wall..."
"I understand you have the only water, and the only heated running water in Hueco Mundo," Byakuya went on.
"You've studied my life in some pretty good detail," Grimmjow observed, eyeing Byakuya curiously.
"You were an enemy," Byakuya reasoned, "And even as we came to work together in the war, there is no official treaty between our forces."
"No, not really," Grimmjow agreed, "But then, you did help free our governor personally, so we have reason not to quarrel."
"Agreed," Byakuya said, nodding and finishing his drink.
"So, do you have a tent to sleep in?" Renji asked.
"Naw, they were all taken," Grimmjow sighed, "I thought I'd just curl up here at the end of the real bed."
His jaw dropped onto the floor as Byakuya and Renji exchanged glances, the moved over and made room for him.
"Just keep your mitts off my captain," Renji warned the hollow teasingly, "No trying to eat him in the middle of the night."
"I think he's more likely to eat me," Grimmjow said, smirking, "Thanks, Captain Kuchiki."
"It is for tonight only, as it is late and it would be a bother to my staff to have to wake up and search for an open place in one of the tents," Byakuya said sedately.
"Whatever you say..."
Grimmjow started to lie down, then paused, staring, as a hell butterfly flitted into the room and the head captain's voice emerged from the little insect.
"Sorry to bother you so late, but Central 46 is pretty uptight about that blonde quincy getting away. He was the king's right hand, and they really want his head on a platter or maybe they'll just take mine. Anyway, I need you and Renji to go to the living world. The stealth force thinks the escaped quincies ran that way. Maybe Kisuke Urahara can give us a hand looking. Let me know if you find anything...anything at all."
Byakuya gave Renji a regretful look and the two climbed out of the bed, leaving Grimmjow behind.
"I'll just make myself at home," the Sexta Espada joked, curling up under the blankets, "and dream of snuggling you two until you come back."
"You going to just let him do that?" Renji mused as the two hurriedly dressed, then flash stepped into the courtyard.
Byakuya glanced back in the direction of the bedroom and shrugged.
"At least someone will get to sleep tonight," he sighed.
"Just not you and me," Renji mused, "although if it weren't for Grimmjow showing up, we wouldn't have been sleeping either."
"Come Renji," Byakuya said shortly, "We have a mission to see to."