Chapter 6: Our Child

Well, a few months passes very quickly, as some of you know. And for Kagura and Gin, those 6 months were no exception. Gin ran through the Edo streets, wanting to see his wife as soon as possible. He was wearing almost exactly what he had worn when he had left. He imagined her with each tap of his foot. She would be beautiful, slim, graceful, petting Sadaharu…

"I'm home!" he yelled into their home. There was a girl sitting on a counter, but… SHE WAS NOT SLIM AT ALL. She was quite plump, in fact.

"Welcome home Gin!" she smiled. Her hair was down, her bun hairclips only there now for decoration.

"K…" he couldn't finish his sentence.

"I'm pregnant!" she smiled, as if nothing was wrong, as if announcing that night's dinner. His eyes went into the shapes of golf balls, and his mouth fell.

"Pregnant…?" he laughed nervously.

"Mm hmm!" she nodded joyfully.

"So…" he sat down, "You're saying… You didn't munch too much on snacks… And this big thing…" he pointed to her stomach, "Is… Our child, conceived…"

"When we had sex!" she peeped like it was nothing.

"Obviously!!!" he yelled at her, his face blushing up a storm.

"Are you angry…?" she put her finger to her lip.

"Of course I'm not, Kagura…!" he hugged her tight, "I just wish I could have been here sooner."

"It's all right." She shook her head.

"The kid's really coming along, isn't he?"

"Or she."

"You get my point."

"Mm."

"Have you been eating well?" Gin stroked her hair.

"Yeah." She looked up to him, "Welcome home, Gin."

"I'm home… Kagura."

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"Ms. Otae?!" a girl in a kimono cried as the woman fell to the ground. She shattered the dishes as she collapsed.

"Ms. Otae, you need to take some time off. You're pregnant, for god's sakes." Her boss told her in his office, "We'll pay for you a for a little while, so don't worry."

"Thank you, and I'm sorry." She bowed, "Oh, and… Toushi comes here often… When I'm not here, right?"

"Mr. Hijikata? Yes, he's quite popular with the ladies…"

"Please…" she begged, "Don't tell him I'm pregnant. Just say I'm sick."

"Very sick?"

"Fine, just…" she looked down, "Don't make him worry too much."

"I see, you have your own reasons." He nodded, "Leave it to me."

Otae left the building, her stomach throbbing. Any day now, she would go into labor. But she knew very well that Toushi wouldn't be there.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~"Ah, welcome!" the boss of the restraunt smiled as two men entered. It was Okita and Toushirou.

"Ah, crud, I just realized, I shouldn't be here right now, it's Ota-" he stopped, and realized Otae wasn't around, "Where's Otae?"

"Oh, she's taking time off. She's very sick, you see."

"Otae…!" he gritted his teeth.

"That woman, Otae…" Okita looked at him, "She looks a lot like Mitsuba, doesn't she?"

"Sougou…!"

"Let me guess… That's why you fell in love with her, right?"

"Shut up!" he reached for the kid, but missed as Okita swiftly walked out the door.

"Ah, so what'll it be?" the man asked.

"…Oh, right, just some soba…" Toushi took a puff at his cigarette.

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"Come in." Otae sat up in her bed as she heard a knock on the door.

"Yo." Okita walked in with a tangerine, "Apparently, you're sick."

"Oh, a little…"

"Uh-huh. You're pregnant, aren't you?"

"H-How-?!"

"I can see your stomach."

"Oh…" she chuckled at her ignorance, "Please don't tell Toushi."

"I got it." He nodded, "But there's something… I should tell you."

"What is it?"

"I had a sister who died a few years ago… Her name was Mitsuba, and… She was in love with Hijikata-san."

"Oh…"

"And also…" Okita put his eyes down, "He was in love with her, but knew he couldn't make her happy."

"I… See…"

"Here's a picture of her." He passed over a photograph of the woman, and Otae gasped. Mitsuba… Looked exactly like herself. Tears dripped from her eyes as she realized a question. Did he love Otae Shimura…? Or Mitsuba Sougou…?

"I'm sorry… I just thought you'd want to know."

"It's fine, don't worry." She shook her head, "I needed to know."

"I hope the baby comes along well." Okita stood up, but then remembered, "Oh, here's a tangerine. It'll be good for you."

"Thank you." She took it softly as he left, "Toushi…!" she cried when he was gone, "I'm scared…! I need you…!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*"Huh~?" Kagura fell to the ground.

"Kagura!!!" Gin ran up to her, "Are you OK?!"

"My insides hurt… And not where the baby is…!"

"What?!" he looked at her. He thought about what could have happened to her. Then he realized. "Kagura, I'm going to call the doctor."

About 30 minutes later, a sexy woman doctor arrived.

"Kagura-chan~! How is your baby coming along?"

"Doctor Mitsuki." Kagura smiled.

"What seems to be the problem?"

"Something's wrong with her, and I'm worried she may have…" he swallowed, "The same thing as her mother.

"Kazumi, huh…?" Mitsuki sighed, "I was really good friends with her, you know. I always warned her, but…"

"Doctor Mitsuki…"

"Sorry, this is depressing." She started to pull off Kagura's shirt, "Hey hey, Gintoki-kun. You may be her husband, but honestly, could you leave for a while?"

"Y-Yeah." He ran out.

"Let me take a sample." She rubbed a cloth on her skin, "You need the best skin on your back."

"I see."

"Here we are, now we connect it to the computer…" she put a measuring device to the cotton swab.

"…Shit…!" she clenched her fist and punched the wall, "GIN! Come in now!" she called.

"Yeah, I'm here." He leaned against the wall.

"…You were right, Gintoki."

"…Damn it."

"She's sucked up too much sun, and now…!" Mitsuki punched the wall again.

"What should we do…?" she asked the doctor.

"There's no cure yet." Mitsuki rubbed her hand on her forehead, "Honestly, Kagura, if you want to live longer, I suggest you abort your child."

"What?!" Kagura jumped up, and Gin stopped her from moving too much.

"I know it's hard, but Kagura, there's a 90% chance of you dying during childbirth!"

"90…"

"I won't give up my child!!!" she yelled.

"Kagura-chan…!"

"It's Gin's and my precious child, there's no way I'm going to kill it!"

"I agree." He nodded, "After all, this is what Kagura decided. This is Kagura's choice, and I'll stand behind her all the way."

"…I got it." She nodded, "I'll stand behind you too." She took her bag.

"We'll tell you when the baby comes!" Kagura called after her.

"Of course!" she yelled back.

"Kagura… I'll always stand by you." He hugged her from behind.

"Thank you… Gin." She tightened her grip, afraid she wouldn't be able to hold on to him for much longer.