Nami watched Isshin as he played with the boys during his monthly visit. She had told him he could come as often as he liked but his small medical clinic kept him too busy to visit more. She appreciated the fact that he treated both boys like his grandchildren and loved them both. The man had never once shunned Hisoka and had formed a deep bond with the child just like his son had. Maybe that was why the child never cried for Ichigo. Hisoka had Isshin and he had finally bonded with Grimmjow just like Yusei had.
Isshin had been in attendance for the boys' first birthday party, but unfortunately his son had missed the momentous occasion. It had now been six months since Ichigo's disappearance. The first few months, Nami always asked him if he had heard anything from his wayward son. After receiving negative responses month after month, she no longer asked about him anymore.
When the children were content playing with each other, Isshin took the opportunity to talk with Nami. He pulled himself up onto the couch to sit beside her from where he had been on the floor with the boys. Reaching to his back pocket, he pulled out the letter he had brought with him. Taking her hand in his, he placed the nondescript white envelope in her palm that bore only his address with no return address.
"I finally heard from him, sweetie," he stated in a low voice while still holding her hand. He could feel her shaking as her eyes went wide with shock. "I don't know where he is, but he says he's okay. I just thought you might want to read it for yourself."
Ichigo had never intended for her to see the letter, but for some reason Isshin felt she had the right to know what was going on with him. He had seriously considered never giving her the letter or letting her know he had heard from his son. However, he was afraid the boy would suddenly reappear in her life which would be even more of an unwelcome and hurtful surprise. His fear had been this woman would tear his son apart. It had been a startling disappointment that it was his son instead that had shattered her world. He had known from the beginning there was no way to get out of this relationship without someone getting hurt. Never once did it cross his mind that it would be her caught in the middle of the emotional wreckage. Glancing at the children, he gave her a hug as her body shuddered uncontrollably.
"You might want to be alone to read this. I'll watch the boys. Take your time," he said, leaning forward to kiss her on the forehead. He thought of her as a daughter since she would never be his daughter-in-law. Turning his back on her was one thing, but doing it to the children was quite another. One day, he would whip his son's ass for this.
Nami slowly rose from couch, willing her legs to move her to the kitchen and out to the back porch. She felt too weak to chance taking the stairs to hide in her bedroom. What could this letter possibly contain that he had given her such a dread inducing warning? Sitting down in one of the wicker chairs with the extra soft padded cushions, she pulled out the pages of the lengthy letter. After taking a deep breath, she unfolded the pages and began to read. The first page was full of the 'how are you, I'm fine' type fodder of most letters. At the beginning of the second page, the tone changed drastically when he began describing what was going on in his life.
I'm a researcher at a pharmaceutical lab. Dad, I'm sorry that I will never be a doctor like you. Other things got in the way of that and sidetracked me.
Nami swallowed hard to suppress the tears that rose with the guilt. She assumed that she was one of the 'other things' that distracted him from following his, and his father's, dream for him. Pulling in a steadying breath, she closed her burning eyes momentarily before reopening them to continue reading.
I'll still be helping people. We're researching and developing drugs for major terminal diseases such as cancer and aids. There are other departments here as well that I can always transfer to later. Suffice it to say, there are many opportunities for advancement here. There's also a project that is very important here that only a few elite specialists are chosen to take part in. I'll tell you more about that later when I learn more myself.
How are the children? I miss them terribly, especially Hisoka. I know he was not mine biologically, but more importantly the love I bore for him came straight from the heart rather than necessity of duty due to genetics. Yusei may look like me, but he's Grimmjow all over again.
Nami could not help but smile because she shared that opinion. Swiping at the tears that had escaped her eyes, she read further.
Dad, I messed up when I let the woman get away that I loved so much. I should have fought harder for her. I should have kept trying like you did for Mom until she noticed you. Instead, I willingly pushed her into the other man's arms like a fool. If I had fought for her, I would have made things so different for her. She would never have become that wild creature. She would not have been held prisoner on that military base. However, that's purely selfish on my part and does not matter at all now. But she does love Grimmjow and is quite happy with him. And of course, there's the boys. I don't know if I could have ever made her happy like she is with her family.
I did meet a girl here though. She's one of the lead assistants on the much coveted big experiment.
Nami was not sure if she winced from the fact he had met someone or if it was the use of the word experiment which always left her with a bad taste in her mouth. It was a very harsh and displeasing word from the connotation it had been used in with Grimmjow and the awful memories it evoked for them both.
Her name is Renate. She's from France. There are foreigners from all over the world here. It's an amazing place. I wish you could see it, Dad. The best equipment, the brightest minds; it's just incredible!
Nami thought it was sweet how he would refer to his father occasionally in the letter as if he were conversing with him which made it so warm and personal. Like a glutton for punishment, she read every word as he affectionately described the lovely blond-haired, blue-eyed French tart. She struggled through each detailed recollection of the dates they had been on and how serious their relationship was getting.
For Christmas, I'm buying her a ring. This is the one. I'm going to ask her to marry me.
Nami could not bear to read anymore. Refusing to give into the childish compulsion to rip the letter to shreds and set it on fire, she neatly folded it and put it back in the envelope. She would take it to Isshin and try to forget about what she had read. A smile tilted her lips despite the pain. It had brought closure to her and ended a chapter in her life. She would no longer have to wonder about him and if he was all right. Finally, she could let him go completely to love her husband to the fullest of her ability as she should without keeping any part of her heart from him because it was reserved for another man.
"Are you okay?" Isshin asked, taking the letter from her and sliding it into his back pocket. He could tell she had been crying, and she was still disturbingly pale. Touching her cheek, he found her skin to be very warm to the touch which ruled out that she was in a medical case of shock. It was just emotional shock affecting her so adversely.
"I'm fine, Isshin. For the first time in a very long time, I really am fine without him," she said, seeing in the man's dark eyes he knew exactly what she meant by the statement.
~\..'../~
Five years later...
Nami was standing at the sink washing the lunch dishes when Yusei tried to creep up behind her. She was thankful for the return of her acute hearing and a few of her other overdeveloped senses. She could smell the sweat on him and hear his feet scraping across the floor. Her super senses came in handy with the mischievous six-year-old who never tired of attempting to find new ways to surprise or just plain terrify her. She could hear the low croak of the toad he held in his hand as he reached out to attempt to slide it into her apron pocket.
"You do that and you'll regret it mister," she warned without looking at him.
"Oh, Mooooommmm," he whined, making her one syllable name into about four.
"Take your friend back outside to be with his brothers and sisters," she ordered him, looking down at the pouting orange head who still bore untamed spikes like his father. "How would you like it if someone took you away from your brother and sister?"
"I wouldn't like it," he mumbled, hanging his head and moving slowly to the back door.
"Now, Mr. Toad will be happy and so will I," she murmured as she watched him release the huge brown toad into the grass at the edge of the back porch.
"Maaaama!" Hisoka yelled, running into the kitchen holding his brown-haired sister who had just turned four.
The child was taller and sturdier built than his brother. However, what Yusei lacked in size he made up for in attitude. She could barely wait until he got older. There would no doubt be many calls from school because of fist fights he had gotten into to protect his siblings. Hisoka was becoming something of a gentle giant. He reminded her of a story she had read about a lion that had been raised with lambs and preferred to sit on a hill and sniff flowers all day. She could foresee the day when he would get pissed off for one reason or the other and the placid lamb would turn into a roaring lion to take down the wolves who threatened his family. She was sure that would be what it would take to stir up his ire and get him going. Especially his sister. Both boys were already incredibly protective of their baby sister, Mitsuhime, who was without a doubt their sweet princess. She looked like Nami except for her gorgeous blue eyes that were like Grimmjow's. The child also had her father's temperament. Boys beware of this one. Between her protective brothers and her own violent tendencies it would be a miracle if a boy could get close enough to her for a hug much less anything else. She had already blackened one overzealous young boy's eye when he thought he could get a peck on the cheek.
"Mamamamamama," Hisoka chanted when he thought he was being ignored.
"Oh, my god, honey, what?" Nami exclaimed, struggling to hold her sanity.
"Isn't sissy pretty?" he declared, holding her up.
"Oh, my," she gasped upon seeing that her daughter was made up to look like a clown although she was sure that was not the intention.
"I'm pretty!" Mitsuhime crowed, clapping her hands happily. Her lips were ringed with a thick line of shell pink lipstick and dark brown eye shadow covered her eyes making her look like some sort of crazed, faded panda. Two dark pink spots of blush sat on the apples of her cheeks in perfect circles.
Nami covered her mouth with her hand to suppress a giggle.
"Oh, Mama, you should see what she did to the bathroom," Hisoka added ominously, clicking his tongue and shaking his head. "That's not so pretty."
"What?" Before Nami could get upset over what disaster that awaited her in the bathroom, she felt Yusei tugging intently on her apron.
"Mama, look!" He held up his prize to show her. In his little hands he held a harmless, at least venom wise, green snake. The danger now lay in what she would do to herself upon seeing the snake.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHH! Dammit, get that out of here! I hate snakes! Bring back the toad, bring back the toad!" she screamed, running from her child who was eager to share the joy of his latest catch.
"But Mom! It's so pretty! And isn't green your favorite color? Oh, come on, Mom, just look at it," he begged, following after her as she made her escape across the foyer.
"What the hell..." Grimmjow muttered, jumping out of her way as his barely five foot tall wife nearly ran over him to get the stairs. He let out a roar of laughter while watching his vertically challenged wife take the stairs two at a time in her magnificently swift retreat. Glaring down at his son, he asked, "What you got boy?"
"This," the disappointed child said sadly, lifting up the jeweled toned snaked for his father to see.
"Take it out, Yusei. You know your mother hates snakes. What the hell is wrong with you?" His attention was quickly brought to his other children.
"Dammit, dammit, dammit," Mitsuhime sang as Hisoka appeared from the kitchen with her still in his arms.
"Oh, my god," the increasingly and thoroughly entertained father muttered upon seeing the little clown who was his sweet but filthy mouthed daughter. "Where'd you hear that word, baby?"
"Mommy!" she squealed proudly.
"And Yusei said shit too," the miniature blunette tattle tailed.
"Honestly, Hisoka you're going to grow up to be a damn informant one day. You squeal more than a fucking pig!" the angry orangette yelled at him.
"Yusei, shut your mouth, dammit!" Grimmjow yelled.
"Dammit!" his daughter shrieked.
"YUSEI! Stop using your father's words! Grimmjow, I'm going to whip all of you!" Nami screamed from the safety of the bedroom. "Is that snake out of here yet?"
Grimmjow took Mitsuhime from her brother the snitch and signaled the Tom Sawyer wannabe to get the snake out of the house. He patted his mini-me on the head as his son proudly stood beside him holding his sister's hand while they waited for the return of the snake charmer.
"You're mother is going to kill us all," he warned them, moving to the stairs carrying his daughter while the boys followed behind. "You two go take your showers and meet me back down here to help cook dinner. I think you've all tortured your poor mother enough for one day."
Ichigo's room had become a room for the princess and the nursery had been transformed into a sitting room where the family would gather at night for reading stories and snuggling together before the children were put to bed. Grimmjow heard another scream from Nami. Looking at his heavily made up daughter, he could only imagine what kind of mess she had made for her mother in the bathroom.
"You could use a bath too, little girl," he muttered, taking her to her bathroom to give her a quick wash up. He would have to catch the boys, especially Yusei, before they got out of the shower to make sure they had actually used soap and not just ran around under the water to get wet. That boy seemed to be allergic to cleanliness.
The doorbell rang in the midst of bath time. Since Nami was the only person somewhat free to go answer the door, she threw down her cleaning cloth leaving that last smear of lipstick on the tiled wall until she could swiftly dispatch the person at the door. Irritation from her family's dirty mouths coupled with the awful make-up mess she had been cleaning had put her into a terrible mood. She stomped down the stairs, pushing up her sleeves as if she intended to beat the person standing at the door. Opening the door, she prepared to unleash her anger on the unsuspecting individual on the other side.
I can leave you with a cliffhanger but I can't end this without telling my beta, xfang-girlx, thanks for catching my grammar and typing mistakes!