Sorry I took so long to update, but summer activities and what not have given me writer's block. I'm still trying work my way out of it...maybe attending less soirees will help...why must summers be so full of all nighters...? Anyway, here goes chapter 8. I promise the next chapter wiil be VERY exciting! It will totally kick derrier! This one might be a bit off, remember, I'm still working through this dreadful writer's block, so I do apologize for that.

Enjoy!

Last Day of Training

Rukia wandered the Kuchiki Estate very early that morning; she had another nightmare and could not go back to sleep, it was only five in the morning and dawn was just beginning to break. She walked towards the small garden closest to her room, it wasn't much of a garden, but rather one of the small squares of nature in between the many halls of the Kuchiki Manor. She sat on a bench right under a tree she closed her eyes, his wonderful scent wandered the air.

All this time she had never noticed how wonderful he smelled, not until the act which impregnated her took place. Back then she was frightened; she never had imagined she would become involved with him in that way, but it happened, and although she hated to admit it, she loved it, and even craved more of it. It was no longer necessary for them to participate in such acts, but they did so nonetheless. Unohana told her that continuing their 'activities' was good for the pregnancy; it not only prepared her body for labor, but the child craved his father's reiatsu, and intercourse was the way in which he acquired it.

She was beginning to grow used to the idea of being with him, the father of her child, that is…until he arrived, that stupid carrot-top Ichigo, he ruined everything! Now she knew she could never be happy; he was drunk and probably kissed her by mistake, but she couldn't go back after that. She could ignore it, and she would, but the act would never be erased from her mind; a moment of his lips on hers was better than anything, better than the sun, better that the wind...

She looked up at the trees and closed her eyes as the blossoms showered upon her. The light touch of the petals on her face relaxed her, but the light touch of his fingertips relaxed her even more. He was here, she knew it, his scent, his unmistakably soft touch. He was standing behind her; his fingertips massaging her scalp gently and then skimming down her jaw line, then they fell softly down the sides of her neck. His grip tightened on her shoulders as he kneaded her tired flesh sensually. He briefly kissed the side of her neck, and as quickly as he came he left...

She opened her eyes and looked back at the sky; every second the sun seemed to reveal itself more. A thought slipped in her mind, and before she knew it she was in front of Ichigo's room; she hesitated a bit, but then she opened the door careful not to wake him up, and sat on the floor beside his futon. She observed his sleeping expression; the practically permanent frown on his face erased as he slept soundly; she smiled lightly at this; then she frowned again when her thoughts went back to the man in the garden.

'Ever since Ichigo arrived, your touch is not the same, it no longer holds such power over me. I'm sorry, forgive me, to think I loved you…but Ichigo…with Ichigo it's different, now everything has changed…' she thought to herself.

She looked down at Ichigo and couldn't resist the urge to touch his face. Her pale fingertips touched the corner of his lips and remained there for a second, before lightly tracing his lips. She leaned down, her lips very close to his; she wanted to do it, she did, but the child inside of her stopped her, warned her, he moved in her stomach uneasily; this surprised her, he was not developed enough to do that. Her baby saw Ichigo as the enemy, the enemy trying to separate his parents; he was somehow very aware of the world outside of the safety of his mother's womb. She smirked, she shouldn't be surprised, he was after all no ordinary baby…

She lowered a hand to her stomach and caressed it lightly to ease her child's discomfort; once he was relaxed, she kissed Ichigo's forehead. She wanted to feel his lips moving eagerly with hers, but that could not be; he could not know of this, he shouldn't even know that she was here. She blushed and then moved away from him; she looked at him one last time before leaving his room.

Not long after Rukia left Ichigo woke up; he sat up on his futon and held his head; it was still hurting from yesterday. He closed his eyes and then widened them when he remembered the previous day's events. He kissed her; not only did he kiss her but he practically forced her, she pushed him away repeatedly, and the thing was, he knew what he was doing. He hoped dearly that she thought otherwise though; maybe she would forgive him because he was drunk and according to her didn't know what he was doing. He looked around the room confused; he felt her reiatsu, it was unmistakable, was she here a moment ago? Trying to put his thoughts of Rukia aside, he dressed in his Shinigami robes and left to the Squad Twelve Training Grounds.

"What do you mean we're not training?!" Exclaimed Ichigo; Mayuri Kurotsuchi looked at him unaffected.

"That is correct Kurosaki, my Squad and I are currently working on a very important scientific project. Unless you are willing to hand over the Quincy, or maybe your own body, I've never tested on a Vizard before," said Kurotsuchi thoughtfully.

"Hell no!" replied Ichigo immediately.

"Well then, Nemu," he turned to look at Nemu and she nodded, she first kicked out Chad, and then a screaming Ichigo. She looked at Ishida and hesitated a bit.

"Nemu we've gone over this," said Kurotsuchi impatiently. Nemu nodded and lifted him in her arms bridal style; he looked at her shocked, she was so strong, then again he should have expected it. She set him down more gently than the others who were still on the floor where she last threw them.

"Uryuu Ishida you are a fascinating male specimen both physically and mentally," she said stoically, before leaving back to her master; the three of them looked very confused, especially Ishida.

"What the hell was that? What do these women see in you anyway?" Said Ichigo perplexed; Ishida shrugged.

"This is stupid, we completely wasted our time with both Mayuri Kurotsuchi and Kyoraku," said Ichigo annoyed.

"Hopefully Captain Ukitake will make better use of our time," said Ishida lifting his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Kurosaki-kun Ishida-kun! Sado-kun!" Screamed Orihime running behind them trying to catch up; the three immediately stopped.

"Orihime?" Said Ishida confused.

"I want to come with you, Kuchiki-san will be there and I want to visit her," smiled Orihime.

"You're more than welcomed to come Orihime," smiled Ichigo; Orihime blushed pleasantly surprised by his reaction.

"Thank you Kurosaki-kun!" She beamed, and walked the rest of the way by his side; Ishida chose to ignore the jealousy running through his veins.

"I wonder what Captain Ukitake will have us do," said Ishida.

"Who knows maybe he'll have us clean his office…." said Ichigo still annoyed about his time with two of the captains being less than productive.

"There is no reason to be so cynical Ichigo, besides, Ukitake is an excellent Captain, I'm sure he will have something excellent prepared for us," said Ishida beginning to grow annoyed with Ichigo.

When they are about to enter the office building Kiyone and Sentaro appear in front of them pointing their zanpakutos at them; seeing that it is only them, they lower their weapons and bow apologetically.

"Forgive us, we only attempted to protect Ukitake-taichou," they both said in unison.

"It's okay, you meant no harm," smiled Orihime.

"Follow us, we will take you to Ukitake-taichou," said Kiyone; they all followed her and Sentaro inside.

"Ukitake-taichou Kurosaki Ichigo and…" said Kiyone as she opened the door; she froze and stopped what she was saying; she looked shocked. Ichigo moved ahead to see what was going on; he too was at a loss for words and completely shocked.

Ukitake was lying face-up on his desk breathing heavily, and Rukia was on top of him straddling him; her hands were on his chest. All the paperwork and items that were on the desk were apparently thrown abruptly on the floor. Rukia froze for a second; then she immediately got off of him straightening out her robes and blushing madly. Ukitake stood up abruptly as well and cleared his throat before speaking.

"I um…was choking due to severe cough and Rukia was using her kido to heal me," he explained quickly. Kiyone and Sentaro bought this quite easily, but the rest of the group didn't believe him.

Ichigo looked at Ukitake suspiciously while Orihime looked back and forth at Ukitake and down to Rukia's womb; she smiled delighted. 'That's it! Ukitake-sama must be the daddy of Kuchiki-san's baby, they do make a cute couple! Ukitake-sama has a certain…older man charm…why didn't I see this before? He's so handsome! It would have been impossible for Kuchiki-san to never notice that!' thought Orihime brightly; it took all of her self control not to burst out happily into giggles.

"We will be working on your kido today; I spoke to Byakuya and he thinks it would be useful for you to learn more of the spells," said Ukitake; after he spoke there was only awkward silence.

"Rukia will be helping you since she does very well in that area," he said shortly.

"Follow me," said Rukia; the four followed her outside to the Squad Thirteen training grounds. She helped Chad and Ishida first; they seemed to comprehend pretty quickly, she asked them if they needed help, but they declined; there was a certain person she was not so thrilled to have to face. She knew it could not be avoided, he was sitting under a tree and she approached him. She stood in front of him and he stood up as well; she noted that he looked very angry, but yet did not voice anything.

"Ready to begin?" she asked; he nodded.

"All right, so we will begin with the binding spells," she said; she recited the incantation and then told Ichigo to do it.

"Bakudo number one, sai," he said binding Rukia's wrists behind her back.

"Very good, now try number four," she said once he released her.

"Bakudo number four, hainawa," he said; she nodded in approval, but then looked confused when he did not release her. He walked towards her and gently pushed her against the tree.

"What's your problem you baka?! Release me this instant!"

"No, not until you tell me who the father is…"

"Ichigo I already told you, I can't, it would do great damage to his honor…"

"Is that because he's a captain? Your captain?" He asked; she froze, but then seemed to relax.

"How could you say such a thing Ichigo?! Ukitake-taichou is…"

"What? Too honorable? Fits the bill doesn't he? I could imagine the scandal if he really was the father," he said; Rukia's eyes widened.

"What is your problem? What does it matter to you who the father is, it's none of your business!" Ichigo immediately let her go and looked away a bit painfully.

"Yeah, you're right, I'm sorry," said Ichigo walking away; Rukia watched him as he left, suppressing her want to run after him.

The six hours of training seemed to last an eternity to Rukia; the situation between her and Ichigo became very awkward. When they no longer needed her help to train she sat under a tree with Orihime; Rukia began to grow annoyed with her constant talk about the baby. 'Kuchiki-san can I be the auntie?…let's go shopping for clothes when we get to the world of the living….who's the father?…can I touch your tummy?…I can be your babysitter if you want…what was it like to have…?…did it hurt when you lost your…?' Rukia's replies were 'I guess…okay…can't tell you…go ahead…sure, I'll need one anyway…a little bit awkward I guess…yes, it was very painful.'

She needed to get away from this, she needed to have a couple of hours without discussing her current issue. She stood up suddenly and walked away; she realized how rude she must have been to Orihime, but she very much needed a break, and she knew just where to go.

She walked over to the Squad Ten barracks; she knew she would be there right now. She stood in front of her door and knocked; a very tired Rangiku walked out of the room. She covered her eyes from the sudden daylight, and she looked confused.

"Morning already eh? Well come in," she said; Rukia walked inside with her.

"So to what do I owe the honor? You haven't dropped by ever since Ichigo and the others came," said Rangiku as she served herself and Rukia some tea.

"That's just it, I'm tired of everyone making a big deal about the baby. It's just a baby; it's not like I'm popping out a nuclear bomb, whatever that is…"

"Rukia, this isn't just a baby…you know that."

"I know, but can't the other captains be a little more discreet? I don't need all of this attention; why did Ichigo even have to find out? Wouldn't it have been better for me to leave to the world of the living without them finding out? I'm sure his father would have taken good care of us all on his own," said Rukia placing a hand on her stomach.

"Yes, but you know he can't do that, he's too busy, besides, with that baby's strong reiatsu Hollows will be practically raining on you," said Rangiku taking a sip of her tea.

"I suppose you're right," sighed Rukia, "I just want to pretend, at least for a moment…that everything's normal again and that I'm not pregnant."

"In that case, let's do like bachelorettes and go out tonight."

"Huh?"

"Ikkaku and Ayasegawa are having a party tonight; they reserved a bar and it's VIP only, I'm in that list and I can bring whoever I want," said Rangiku triumphantly.

"But I can't do that I'm…"

"What? Pregnant? I thought you wanted a break from that, besides, I'll take care of you, I'll make sure you don't drink or do anything stupid," smiled Rangiku.

"All right give me another one!" Said Rangiku to the bar tender as he poured more sake in her bowl; she was so drunk that she could barely stand; Rukia was sitting next to her having some tea.

"Honestly Rukia, once this whole thing with your baby is over you and I have to do this more often; we'll go back into the dating scene and party! You don't know how honored I am that you chose me to confide in!" Said Rangiku happily as she downed another drink; Rukia smiled at her. Rangiku was a lively soul; she was glad she chose her; she was the only one that could seem to lighten the load on her shoulders.

"Yeah, sounds like a plan," said Rukia; then she noticed Renji walk inside; as soon as he saw her a smile graced his face and he ran over to hug her so tightly that it hurt. He seemed a bit drunk; he smelled like alcohol

"It's been a while, you don't know how much I've wanted to see you."

"Well you could have visited anytime you wanted, you simply chose not to," said Rukia crossing her arms over her chest.

"Oh come on, I needed to you know…get over the shock about your…"

"Well there's no need to talk about that now, come on…drinking contest, you and me."

"You really think you should?" He asked skeptically.

"What? Too scared to lose to a pregnant woman?"

"Of course not," he replied picking up some sake; she did the same. By now Rangiku was passed out; before they knew it, Renji and Rukia were surrounded by a crowd of spectators observing them closely to see who won their drinking contest. Ayasegawa was coaching Rukia while Ikkaku was coaching Renji; Ikkaku gave Renji some water to rinse his mouth and a bucket to spit it out in while Ayasegawa gave Rukia a massage.

"All right Rukia, show those barbarians that the beautiful can also excel in such matters," said Ayasegawa flipping his hair to the side; Rukia nodded seriously. As soon as Rukia was about to take the next shot Ukitake and Byakuya walked inside; they both appeared very upset. In a moment they were both in front of her; Byakuya glared at her while Ukitake shook his head in disapproval.

"What a disgrace you are Rukia, look at yourself, a Kuchiki should not behave in such a barbaric manner," said Byakuya coldly.

"Nii-sama really, I'm fine," said Rukia attempting to get up, but she almost fell; in a flash she found herself in Ukitake's arms.

"Ukitake-sama, what pretty eyes you have," said Rukia dazed as she pinched his cheek; Byakuya took her from him.

"I will take care of this," said Byakuya, but before he left the bar he paused and looked down at Rukia; her body was glowing blue with the incoming flow of reiatsu; he looked back and saw that fifty percent of the Shinigami in there were fainted on the floor; another twenty percent were very weak and struggling to stay awake.

"Captain Ukitake, what is this?"

"It is what we feared, Rukia needs to leave the Soul Society now, it seems the alcohol affected the child just as much as the mother; like his mother he has lost control, only that when he loses control he brings damage to much more than a family name. We need to move her now before the situation worsens; getting her into a gigai will stop the child's absorption of reiatsu. I will go call the others; Kurosaki is probably at the Kuchiki Estate," said Ukitake solemnly, Byakuya nodded and left with Rukia in his arms.

Byakuya ran quickly through the streets of Sereitei. He was breathing heavily; the baby's intake of reiatsu was also affecting him; if he would have been any weaker he would have fainted like all the others. As soon as he arrived to the manor he found Captain Soi Fong in front waiting for him.

"Captain Soi Fong," he said bowing slightly.

"Byakuya," said Soi Fong meeting his gaze a bit coldly.

"Nii-sama, doesn't Soi-chan look pretty, you know…I've always thought she was gorgeous!" Beamed Rukia in her drunken state.

"Was it not your duty to ensure that nothing happened to Kuchiki Rukia or the child?" Asked Soi Fong a bit annoyed; Byakuya didn't say anything he just walked past her.

"All those leaving Soul Society will be leaving in a matter of minutes; I suggest you prepare your things to leave," said Byakuya; Soi Fong nodded and in a matter of seconds she was gone.

Byakuya walked to Ichigo's room and opened the door abruptly; Ichigo was sleeping and stood up panicked at the sudden intrusion.

"Geez can't you knock?!" He asked Byakuya furiously; then his eyes shot towards Rukia who was glowing blue and was obviously observing currents of reiatsu.

"Ichigo, look nii-sama it's pretty Ichigo! He's so cute I just wanna hug him and do things to him that I can't say out loud!" Said Rukia giggling; Byakuya ignored her but Ichigo's face turned red.

"You will need to leave Soul Society earlier than expected, Rukia's actions have caused the child to absorb massive amounts of reiatsu."

"How bad is it?"

"Half of the men in a bar have fainted due to loss of reiatsu," said Byakuya, Ichigo stood up and took Rukia from Byakuya's arms and Byakuya looked him solemnly in the eyes.

"Ensure that she takes all of her medicines and follows step by step the instructions given to her by Captain Unohana. I will put this simply Kurosaki, if anything happens to Rukia or the child, I will kill you." He said very seriously placing the medicines inside one of Rukia's pockets; Ichigo looked at him solemnly and nodded.