Two weeks passed, and Izuru's child got noticeably larger; he was now wearing old clothes of Deruko's, the ones she'd worn before Murasaki was born. Dark circles had also begun to appear under his eyes, he wasn't sleeping well, and these things didn't go unnoticed by Deruko, either. As she had sources within the Soul Society, she knew what went on most of the time, and knew that Izuru was very missed.
So one day, she made a call.
Gin Ichimaru walked the path up to the cottage-like house, frowning a little.
Was this really where Izuru had been all this time? Or was it a trap, set up by Deruko? He really didn't believe it could be the latter... Deruko disliked him, but she wasn't the type to do something like that...
He knocked on the door. Deruko answered, and silently motioned him into a room.
Izuru, looking about seven months pregnant now, was almost sadly gazing out of the window from a chair, while a gorgeous young girl played nearby.
"Izuru?" The lieutenant's head swiveled quickly towards Gin's voice.
"C-Captain?" Izuru said, surprised. Gin was wearing his captain's overcoat? But... if he'd rebelled, then... A feeling of horror came over him. Had he just misunderstood, then overreacted?
Gin knelt by the chair in which his lover was sitting. "I'm sorry about what you had to overhear at that meeting. I shouldn't've left you alone in the first place, most likely. I can explain myself now." He gently took Izuru's hand.
"You see, Izuru, for a little while, Aizen sent me back here with a solid cover just to infiltrate the Soul Society. But I changed my mind, I couldn't do it. However, I felt I should tell the other captains about it, and that's what that whole thing was about. I was never going to leave again," he said, and frowned a little. "I... I couldn't." Gin stood and held his hand out. "Now, will you return to the Society with me? I understand if you're not ready to. But I'll be there when you are."
Izuru twisted his hands together, looking down, shoulders shaking with unshed tears.
He'd been so stupid... acted so rashly... He took Gin's hand and looked up at him, smiling a little despite the tears pouring freely down his face.
"Gin, I... I'm sorry... Of course I'm going back with you."
Gin pulled Izuru into an embrace, stroking his hair as he usually did.
"Don't apologize, Izuru. It's not your fault."
Later that evening, the couple were back at their own home; Izuru sleeping deeply on the bed, while beside him, reading a novel, Gin looked on fondly.
What he'd told his beloved lieutenant had been true. He had no intention of leaving the Soul Society again, much less betraying it. Gin ran his hand lightly over Izuru's now-prominent midsection and wondered what on Earth was growing inside there.