A/N: Konnichiwa, minna! There is also mpreg in this part of the series, but I hope we've handled it as tactfully this time around as we did in the last part.

Two months later, Aizen's fear appeared to come to pass as Ichigo sped across the courtyard, past the wide windows in the West building to the bathing house a hand clasped over his mouth. He barely made it to the toilet, modern in spite of the more traditional surroundings, and was violently ill as everything he'd eaten in the last twenty-four hours came back up to greet him. Only twenty-four hours because at almost this exact same time the previous day, he'd done the same thing. In fact, the last two weeks, almost every day his morning ritual had begun with dashing to the bathhouse. Now, he was seriously beginning to consider wishing the stupid toilet be located closer to his bedroom.

"Ugh..." He moaned, mentally wishing once again that his blue-haired lover would return regardless of the consequences of reality.

As though responding to his mental desires, there was a ripple through the Shrine's senses, informing the Royal of the new arrival. Conquest had come home. Renji, now that his mate was okay and their kits developing well, was able to return to work, and several months of practice with his Flit, thanks to Ichigo and Grimmjow's suggestions, meant he could now go to work and then come home at night to be with his family. It had come to be a 'nine-to-five-job'.

Regardless, the panther came stalking into bedroom of the sanctuary he shared with the King, paws padding silently across the stone floor in his demon form, looking thoroughly exhausted.

A very few minutes later, Ichigo returned, hand absently rubbing his stomach and looking like...well...Death warmed over. Sleepy, dull amber blinked in confusion and his brows drew together. "Yer...home?"

A slow smile took over his face, and he immediately crawled into bed to cuddle the one person he knew for certain would make him feel better, paws, fur and all. He pulled gently on the feline's shoulders, nuzzling his head under Conquest's chin with a satisfied sigh, even the way he smelled, covered in sweat and battle, was heavenly to the monarch.

"Yep, love, I'm home," The blunette rumbled affectionately, petting his mate's hair.

He smelled...different. Sweeter? But he wasn't thinking about that now. Right now he was thinking about how perfect and warm he felt in his arms, how content he was to just touch his King and mate. How good it felt to be home. Their good feeling was interrupted almost immediately however by a second round of nausea.

Ichigo rolled away, sitting up fairly quickly to avoid spitting stomach acid on his other half. If he focused on something far away and tried not to think about doing anything but just sitting there he just might be able to get away with not running to the toilet again. The last week had taught him that.

"Ugh...not again."

"What's th' matter?"

Conquest was concerned, blinking at his mate, not sure if he should cuddle him for comfort or refrain from touching. He decided on the latter since the orangette had moved away, and perched much like a cat on his belly, ears flicking curiously.

"Gonna...urp..." Ichigo belched, holding his stomach and then ran. Off the bed, out the door with a slam and back to the bathhouse, leaving a trail of open doors and blowing leaves in his wake.

The panther blinked. He was…sick? Wait. The King didn't get sick. What the fuck? It was practically audible as the poor Horseman's mental gears ground together. After he nearly broke his brain, he gave up and went slinking after his mate to wait for him outside the bathhouse.

"G-grimm...?" The King whimpered from where he leaned against the wall next to the toilet.

Conquest looked about in confusion, and said, "I'm here."

Grimm? Who was this Grimm? He might not be who the King wanted, but he was there if Ichigo would accept him as a substitute.

"Could you get Shiro...he said he had some kind of spell that makes it easier, I think...it worked on Gin." His voice was gravelly, and tired...so, so tired. He actually dozed off a little, eyes closed and breathing softly.

"...Ichi? Yer King," the Horseman said carefully. "Why don' ya jus' Order yer sickness away? Say 'I am no' sick' an' make it true?"

Still, he rose to his paws noiselessly, ready to pad off and get the Mage. He was just a little concerned as to why the King was not using his power.

"That wouldn't be right. It's not their fault they're making me sick, and Gin said it'll go away in a couple of months." The orangette shifted around so he could look at his Consort out the open door.

"Ah. I'll git th' Mage then."

Them? Who, or what, the fuck was—oh! Well, that explained the sweet scent. He'd ask about it later, and he went bounding off on all fours, streaking out of the room to fetch the Mage to tend to his ailing King.

Shiro looked up from his customary position, above a snoozing Ulquiorra, reading some thick, ancient tome detailing how to channel magic or what symbols were best to use during which time of the year, which gods to call upon or how to expand his mind such that he could use the not-voice that the others did.

"Blue, you're home! Wait...why are you running? Is King ok? He didn't start bleeding again, did he?!"

"Not bleedin', jus' sick," the panther replied, "said ya knew a spell ta help, asked me ta git'cha." First 'Grimm', now 'Blue'? Why was the Mage calling him that? So weird. Shiro knew that wasn't his name.

"Oh. Yeah. That. Um..."

The albino shuffled some papers around on his desk, and when the tail curled around his wrist didn't let him move his arm, he absently uncurled it and held the tip in his hand while he used the previously captured appendage to grab a parchment that had was looked like a recipe written on it.

"Here we go. Just take this to the kitchen. The coffee pot will know what to do."

Conquest took it in his lips, carefully holding it so it didn't get any spit on it, and once more took off on all fours. He had no desire to get it all icky but he traveled fastest in this form and as far as he could tell he needed to get this to his King as soon as possible.

Shiro, in the meantime, once again unwound the stubborn tail from his wrist. "Qio-love, I gotta see ta Ichi, he's havin' a bad day. He didn' sleep much last night, an' ya know that always makes it worse in th' mornin'."

"Return soon, Mate," Death requested sleepily, slinking out from under the chair. As long as he would be getting no more sleep, he might as well get some work done.

"I shall help," Aizen sighed and for the first time in four months, he started to move.

He wriggled, then shrugged, then he flexed and the casing shattered into fine, glittering dust as his wings unfurled to let him glide to the floor. They were more than twice their previous size. The colors were more pure, more brilliant, he had a double rainbow on each wing now, swirled in a mesmerizing, hypnotic design, and their glitter and shine was somehow even brighter, almost like a glow.

"You have both passed up numerous remedies so obvious they were never recorded in any book, and thus were forgotten by people."

The light, the shine and the words were a trap combination for Shiro. He frowned, scanning his notes quickly, as though he was sure he'd have written these things down, in spite of what the butterfly had just said.

"Like what?"

The butterfly reached out and stilled the albino's hands. "Natural remedies and herbs. Raspberry leaf and honey teas have been used by women for countless centuries to calm morning sickness and settle their stomachs, something both of you overlooked in favor of complicated potions. I am not surprised, seeing as neither you, nor the King, are women and wouldn't think to ask a female, but such simple, and might I add completely natural, methods are easily forgotten by being so common. Frankly, they would be better for him."

"Uh..." The albino scratched his head absently, feeling like he'd overlooked an obvious resource. "I think that potion I gave Blue had honey, raspberry and ginger in it. Th' book said somethin' 'bout bein' used in th' Middle Ages fer pregnancy, I think."

"Naturally. As I said, it has been used for centuries. Come, I'm sure Grimm has delivered the potion by now and he will need us." Aizen gave an indulgent smile.

Grimmjow indeed had delivered the potion in a coffee mug, on his back feet this time so he didn't spill it. By then, Ichigo had once again managed to crawl to bed, one of the priestesses had come past, given him a mop bucket and a soft smile with a few words of encouragement born of having helped her own mother with this same exact problem. So, he was curled on his side, dozing but with the bucket close by just in case. When the feline entered the room, he opened an eye and smiled again.

"Faster to run with paws than feet, ne?"

"Much faster," his Consort replied, padding over and handing him the cup. "Can't run wit'out spillin' though."

The king took a whiff of the potion and shuddered. "Eh...you sure this is the same stuff that Gin drank?"

The potion smelled positively foul. Neither were quite sure how it was supposed to stop Ichigo's vomiting rather than inducing it, but who were they to argue with the Mage?

"He gave me th' recipe an' said ta give it ta the coffeemaker. It gave me this. So, I guess so." The panther shrugged, and tried to reassure the King by licking a few drops from his hand where it had spilled just a bit. "It don't taste half as bad as it smells."

Ichigo eyed him suspiciously, but knocked the drink back in one go. He was right, though it smelled atrocious, it was sweet with a subtle sour undertone and a bite that tickled the back of his tongue. It was so good in fact that now that the mug was empty, the orangette almost wished for more.

He made a noise of amusement, then looked over his lover, "Alright, now that my stomach should be settled, get over here."

The Horseman grinned and climbed up into the bed, curling around and cuddling his mate. "Glad yer feelin' better."

"Of course I'm feeling better, you're home." The King smiled and buried his nose in the black and white fur of his Consort's arm.

Conquest cuddled into him all comfortable, letting him relax from the violent heaving so he wouldn't be too distressed when he asked about what was bugging him. "Hey Ichi...d'ya know how far along ya are?"

"Hmm...that's one of the weirdest things, y'know...Aizen says I'm only about eight weeks in, but that's ridiculous." He sighed. It was a constant debate that he simply couldn't stand even thinking about.

"Why's it ridiculous?" Black, but soft-skinned hands caressed his belly gently, watching the sharp claws. All that meant was whoever the King had fancied two months ago had to be the father.

"Well, cuz, as far as I know, the only one capable of immaculate conception is me, and I know I didn't make the Wish. I'm not against it, though getting used to the idea took some severe control on both words and thoughts at first." The orangette laughed a bit, and watched the way his Consort was petting him. "It just shouldn't have been possible."

"Oh everybody knows immaculate conception's bullshit. The King at th' time didn't want 'is lover stoned ta death so 'e made her virgin again with a Directive," the feline chuckled, waving that off. "But no, wha' I meant was, why wouldn't it be possible? Was yer lover at th' time sterile 'r sumthin?"

"Lover? What do you mean? Since we got together I haven't touched anyone else, not even Shiro." Ichigo frowned, more confused than anything else.

"But…tha' don't make no sense." The panther frowned, his stroking coming to a stop. Of course, what he didn't say was it made no sense for Ichigo not to have lovers. Lots of them. "I can't be th' father, so ya must'a been wit' somebody."

The smaller male shifted so he could look the feline in the eye. "And I'm telling you I wasn't. You're the only person I've had sex with in almost four years."

The panther sat up, frowning deeper. "But…tha' ain't how it works. I been gone four months...c'mon, surely ya know who?" He wanted to know. He didn't care, he'd still raise the child with all the love he had, but he wanted to know who.

"I know it makes no sense. None of them will explain it to me, but there hasn't been anyone else. I swear! Don't you believe me?" Ichigo also sat up, putting a bit of space between them so that he could rest against the wall.

"Well..."

Damn it. The King couldn't lie, unless he'd gotten enough control that not everything was a Directive. Since this 'Grimm' hadn't been summoned when Ichigo inquired for him, Conquest could only assume this was true, but even then there could be slip ups so as a rule all of the incarnations of the King tended to be incredibly honest. Plus, he didn't want to call his mate a liar. He fidgeted nervously.

"I jus'…there's gotta be someone! S' th' only way this could'a happened, I just wanna know who, I won't even kill 'em," he promised, very uncomfortable.

"That's it, isn't it?" Ichigo hadn't quite gotten complete control over everything and still needed to watch the way he phrased direct sentences but when the statement was already true reality didn't need to bend to change it, which was why nothing happened when he followed that up with, "You don't believe me. I live with you for two and a half years, date you for over three, and have been your husband for the better part of one, but you don't believe me when I say I've never cheated on you. I don't know how this happened. I don't know why, but I do know that it's a gift. And if all you're going to do is sit there and ignore what I'm saying then I don't know if I have anything else to say right now."

Internally he cursed at the way his bottom lip quivered, and the stinging in the corners of his eyes. He had never been emotional, or well, he'd never been tearful. Angry, yes. Violent, sure. But prone to crying? Never. Not since his mother had died. So, the way his eyes threatened to water, and his heart clenched in his chest as even more painful due to him fighting them.

Conquest didn't know what to say or how to react. He just wasn't understanding, and what the King said only confused him. Dating for over three years? Be together with for two and a half? He didn't remember any such thing, but his mate was in distress.

"I'm sorry, I'm not ignorin' what yer tellin' me, it just…I can't bring m'self ta believe it." He reached for him, wanting to comfort.

The King wanted nothing more than to fall into that embrace, the one he'd been missing for so long, but something held him back. He frowned at the black paw-like hand. "Are your hands always going to be like that?"

The panther blinked down at his hands. They'd always been like that, so... "I guess. S' it bother you?"

"A little. I miss your hands. So strong. The only one who's ever gone those places on me." The orangette sadly took the offered limb in both of his own, the pale bronze a drastic contrast to the pitch black. "Why would you think I'd cheat on you, Grimm?"

He blinked for a moment, seemingly confused by the question and more so confused by Ichigo addressing him by that odd name again. "Um...yer King? An' th' world's yer slut if you felt so inclined? An' ya need heirs? An' it's jus' kinda what Kings do."

The orangette scoffed. "You know the only other partner I've ever had was my twin. Why would I even want to get involved with someone else? And now, obviously," His hand touched his stomach, "the idea of heirs is taken care of. Qio says the first born is always a set of twins and the older of the two will be the heir. So, these two will be enough. Besides, is that all I am anymore?" The last was said quietly, with a tremor of fear that spoke of hidden terrors buried deep in the orangette's heart.

"Is...what all ya are?" The feline's tail formed a question mark.

Ichigo had wandered into territory completely beyond his comprehension. A King with no lovers except his mate? Mind-breaking! It just didn't work like that! Eventually the King would lose interest in the mate, either undoing the mating or starting to bring new people and things to bed to spice it up but sooner or later even that would get old and they would once again have to start looking elsewhere. Living for millennia, it just wasn't possible to stay sexually satisfied with one person.

The expression on Ichigo's face was such that it clashed horribly with the next sentence out of his mouth. His eyebrows were drawn in, creasing the skin deeply. His mouth was a straight line, if slightly turned down at the corners. His nose flared ever so slightly with his breath. His chin was tilted such that he was looking up at the blue panther, but those eyes. Expressive, vibrant, and endless. At the moment, filled with a sort of melancholy resignation that meant whatever the Horseman had meant, the words he'd said were absolutely the wrong ones. However, the King didn't comment on them.

After a moment of watching—no, searching the blunette's own eyes, he drew a breath, "I think I'm hungry."

Then he rose from the bed and wrapping a robe around himself, made his way out of their private building to the common areas, willing himself not to think about what had been implied in that conversation.

Frowning, the feline went after him, confused and lost and clinging to the only thing he really knew as truth at that point: He, First Horseman, Conquest, was mated to the current King, and his mate was pregnant and upset. He didn't know why exactly he was upset or how he was pregnant and kept insisting he was the father, and he really didn't understand how he'd just messed up, but he was aware he'd made a grave error. It needed to be corrected, though he was unsure how, so he simply trailed after his monarch, a little lost and a lot concerned.

Halfway through the courtyard, Ichigo spun and looked down at his Consort, who was padding along on all fours. His frowned deepened, becoming more menacing. "You still don't believe me." It didn't need to be a Directive. "I can hear it in your aura. I don't know how or why or even when you lost faith in me but you know what? I can guarantee you that these two will come out looking just like you, and then..." He was vibrating with a combination of anger and pain, "And then, you'll have to beg me to forgive you for doubting me." Then he spun on his heel and marched into the common rooms without another word.