Author's Notes:

Love and appreciate the reviews!

Disclaimer – Mature Content

Enjoy!

P.S - Announcement at the end.

His Concubine: The Kingmaker

Ichigo

Masaki brushed her fingers through my orange tresses as I laid on her lap. The snow fell all around the castle making the once-green forestry blanket white.

I huffed out a breath watching the smoke rise to the sky. "Are you sad when I'm not here visiting you?" I felt her hand stop moving. When she didn't answer, I got up and glanced at her. "I can tell Papa no, so I don't have to see the shogun."

Her brown eyes were something I inherited along with my unique hair color. Though hers was less bright, the change of the seasons would brighten it to match my own.

"Aren't you manly today?" my mother giggled. I was ten years old, but wise beyond my years.

"Tell me the truth mama. Papa tells me I can't see you often because you are sick, only he can. But he doesn't see you either. When Papa is not around me… I'm sad. Aren't you?"

"Mommy isn't sad." Masaki grabbed my face and rubbed her thumbs over my cheeks. Watching her closely, I thought she was trying to distract me from the forming tears in her eyes. Pulling me back down to her lap, she again ran her fingers through my hair.

"If you aren't sad, why are you crying then?"

I heard her sigh. I knew I was reaching my limit with her bits of patience. "I'm lonely my strawberry prince."

I sat up and pouted. I hated it when she would call me that, but before my words could form to argue with her, they lay on my tongue. Her tears streamed down her cheeks as she looked up at the falling snow. "Please do not cry. I can fill your loneliness with all my love. That way you will never be lonely again."

Masaki glanced down at me. She cried silently, tears streaming down her face without a sound. It was the quiet, desperate crying of a woman broken by her own thoughts. "You already do that." She pulled me into an embrace and held me tightly. "Thank you, Ichigo." I closed my eyes and inhaled her sweet flowery scent. "When you get older, remember my words. 'All relationships have one law: never make the one you love feel alone, especially when you're there.'"

Pulling back, I tilted my head confused. "Do I make you feel that way?"

"No sweet child… but the one who will fall in love with you in the future will." She placed her hands on both of my cheeks and held them there. "You must break this curse, my child."

Looking at Orihime mutter those last words triggered my past memory with my mother.

"…I want you to live for me. Stay alive to be with me. Be here to love and cherish me. You can't possibly do that from beyond the grave."

I was in awe at how proudly she stood before me. In the beginning, she was a timid flower. Easy to control with meager threats and a bit of violence, but not today. She was someone to be reckoned with. The alluring power she exuberated turned me on. Nevertheless, I couldn't act on it.

"Don't look at me like that."

I blinked a few times letting my eyes focus on her. "What?"

"Don't look at me with admiration," she said with a hint of repulsion, but her body language alleged otherwise. "It's uncomfortable."

"Speak your truth," she said with such poise, that I answered right away.

"What we did before I left may have put a strain on our relationship."

"And that is?"

"When we made love to each other. According to… a source, we weren't meant to do that."

Orihime's eyes slightly narrowed. "What does that have to do with you ignoring me?"

I ran a hand down my face letting out a sigh. I winced from the cut on my lip. Licking the cut to soothe the pain, I tried explaining better. "My illness will make you unhappy and obsessed."

"What?" she tilted her head confused.

"Yeah… exactly what I said. Unhappy and obsessed." Trying to remember Nemu's examples I continued. "My father, the Emperor has this energy about him that is strong and controlling due to his upbringing."

"I get that."

"Well, my mother is… how should I say it, a treasure to him. He loves her more than anything and will do anything to keep her safe and happy. There is something about the Ishida's plight that does this to their lover. It happened with my father and mother, a distant cousin of mine's parents, and possibly the King and Queen from 100 years where this all started."

"Okay…" she responded slowly.

"I'm afraid it will happen to you as well since you have become mine."

Orihime huffed and shifted on her feet. "I have always belonged to you before we… did that, and for that, I have suffered endlessly. But that indeed has never stopped me from caring deeply about you."

"That was never my intention." I saw her eyes widen, but I further elaborated. "To make you suffer."

"But you did. What was the point in all of this? To further plunge the knife into the gaping wound of my heart? The tears, misery, grief, and abandonment. Why did you throw me away so easily?"

"I had no other choice."

"You didn't have any other choice?" she scoffed. "You don't destroy people you care about. That's not how it works. That should never be an option."

"Orihime… please."

"Don't you dare stand there and say my name in such a manner. Tell me why you decided to hurt me?"

I could see the past couple of months had taken a toll on her physically. Her face was no longer vibrant with color, her eyes were dim giving it a dark brown color than the usual bright hazel, and her long auburn hair rested down her back dull in color. She was tired. All because of me.

Because I was afraid to find out she might just love me enough to give up her life for me.

Love.

The emotion we as a human species often want so badly that we ruin it before it actually begins. Overthinking it. Fantasizing about it. Imagining it. Expecting it. Worrying about it. Then doubting it. Instead of letting it naturally evolve.

"Say something!"

"Because I want you to live," I finally shouted back. Her body flinched and I lowered my voice. "I just want you to live."

She reached for her neck and slightly traced her fingers over it. I watched her fingers feeling a deep ache within me from the times both my father and I had wrapped our hands there tethering her between life and death. No matter how many times I tried to erase that memory to replace it with something desirable, it lingered.

"Why do you keep saying that? Was my supposed obsession meant to kill me or something?"

"No. At least I don't think so."

"You're not making any sense," she stomped her foot. I could see a tear trickling down her cheek. Biting the inside of my cheek, I stepped closer to her.

"Can you blame me? That night I confronted you about telling Lord Aizen your identity, do you remember your reasoning?"

"… I want to live."

"So how is it any different now? I'm granting you your wish."

"Is that what you're going with? Hurting me in such a way is because I asked to live?"

I cringed. Okay, maybe that came out wrong. "When you were standing there…" I approached from a different angle. "…and waiting for me with the very smile that owns my soul, I knew right then and there I had to make a choice." I wiped her fallen tears and moved my hand to her shoulder. Touching her gave me the courage to speak my truth. "To see that smile meant for me and wonder what I had done to cause such a fascinating reaction out of you. Then reality hit me. Can I keep you smiling if I left you alone? Let you flourish without the burden of me holding you back. Doing this meant I had to make the right decision for the both of us."

"Without discussing it with me?"

"Yes. I have to prove not only to myself but to my father that I wasn't the one who was obsessed and choosing you for the wrong reasons."

She bit her bottom lip and looked away from my eyes. "What about the ritual?" My hand tightened on her shoulder. I quickly let her go and stepped back.

"We can't do it."

Noticing my hesitancy, she stepped forward to close the gap between us. "Why not? This is something you fought for, begged for, and asked me to stay for. So why are you backing out of it now when we have everything that we need right here?"

Her hazel eyes pleaded for me to tell her the truth, but how could I? If I did, it would shatter everything we have accomplished so far.

"I can't say for sure that she loves me."

"The only way to test that theory is to avoid her," Nemu suggested.

"For how long?"

"As long as it takes."

"That's impossible." Knowing how much I want to be around her now… I couldn't trust myself to keep a distance. "Why is the ritual so brutal enough to cost Orihime her life?"

Nemu faced Uryu who nodded for her to tell me. "My adoptive father Lord Mayuri went deeper into finding out about the Inoues and what our contribution to the earth is. He was the one to find out about the waterfall and what the water means during the cleansing."

"Okay…"

She continued. "During the ritual, the one quoting out the incantations must settle on one thought alone. They will then be faced with the plight in whatever form it has taken up. It can be a thing, a person, or an animal. When unraveling the plight there is more than just one. She must undo one hundred years' worth of plight including the first King's."

"Alone?"

"Yes, and If she is in love with you… her judgment might be compromised, and it will be unsuccessful. That will backfire and return on her causing significant damage to her body and mind."

"Leading to death…" I softly whisper.

Orihime was waiting as I focused back on her. "I…" I started. Her eyes flickered down to my lips then back up to my eyes. "I was told if we do it… you will die."

"Die?"

I nodded. "For the ritual to completely cure me of this madness… you as an Inoue must give up your life since it is valuable to the heavens."

Orihime had trusted me implicitly, believing in our shared dreams and promises. But as she looked into my eyes, letting the words I had just spoken penetrate her like a dagger, slowly severing the threads of trust we created. Something as simple as a cure was rendered down to giving up her life. With that knowledge now implanted into her mind, the world she had built with me crumbled. She looked at me - the man she had loved – and stood before her now as a stranger cloaked in deceit.

"I'm sorry." She raised her hand to stop me from talking. Her auburn hair covered her eyes making it impossible for me to read her facial expressions. I had no idea what she was thinking after seeing the crumbling dreams she once had.

Taking a step back, Orihime ran her hand through her hair while locking her eyes with me. "Okay. Is there another way for this to work? Curing you I mean?"

"No idea," I mumbled.

She stood silently watching me. "Do you think the cosmos fights for souls to be together? Even though some things are mysterious and powerful to be coincidences," she whispered.

I tilted my head confused. "I'm not sure."

"Yeah. I figured as much." She sighed looking away from me and down to the tatami flooring. "You know…" she glanced back up at me. "I'm pretty sure I didn't meet you for nothing."

"I would like to believe that too."

"Yet here we are. Together." I nodded in agreement. "Therefore, you can't go back and change the beginning, but… together we can start where we are and change the ending. I believe there is more to this plight between us, and death is not the ending to this riddle."

"What are you saying?" I asked.

She gave me a small smile. "We will still do the ritual."

"Orihime!"

"I know it's reckless, but we must try. Who said it has to end with me giving up my life?" She touched my wrists and wrapped them with her hands. "It's okay to be afraid, just don't let that fear control you. This is something you've wanted and now we have the opportunity to do it."

"Orihime, you don't seem to understand what you are asking me for." She nodded. "Are you going suicidal on me again? You're giving me an ultimatum instead of putting a sword to your neck."

She recoiled. "Heaven's no. I just have this feeling everything will work out in our favor. I want this for you. To give you the chance to be someone other than the madness wants you to be. I'm willing to do this so you can become Emperor. An Emperor who starts with a clean slate and nothing hindering him back."

"I… this is crazy."

"Then let's call it crazy… together."

~s~

Orihime

Just what the hell was I thinking?

This is insanity at its finest.

Why would I be so quick to agree to doing this knowing the outcome of it all?

My eyes landed on Ichigo sitting cross-legged in the center of his chambers. His hands were twiddling and picking at the fingernails. He was either just as nervous as me or chilly. His kataginu (samurai jacket) was off leaving him topless with only his hakama (pants) on. His abs flexed when he took a deep breath to calm his racing nerves.

Looking up he locked eyes with me. I tried to give him a reassuring smile, but I dropped it when I turned around to look at the scroll Masaki had given me.

After our discussion, I believed it was the right time to do the ritual. The sky was clear, and the moon was full. He was reluctant to do it without more practice on my side, but I told him I practiced since I got the instructions. I was able to head back to my chambers to retrieve the canister filled with the water element and the scroll with the incantations. We were still alone since the banquet was ongoing, so I figured we could do this now without any interruptions.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath in and slowly exhaled out. Opening my eyes, I picked up the canister and turned around to face him again.

"Ready?" I asked.

"No."

I smiled. "Me neither." He chuckled nervously. I opened the canister and began pouring it around him in a circle. When I was done, I stood in front of him with half the water element still inside. Closing my eyes, I opened my mouth to begin.

"Wait." I opened my eyes to see Ichigo staring at me. "Are you sure about this?"

"From my understanding, my mother did this for yours. Even though she wasn't cured, the ritual helped delay the symptoms for a while. Far longer than physical interaction. Let's see if I can do the same. If I can keep going… I will try to cure you at the same time."

He shook his head. "If something feels off… stop immediately. Don't push yourself. Understand?"

I smiled at him. "I got this. Now close your eyes." He did what he was told. I closed my eyes and began.

Each step from the scroll I did effortlessly. Speaking the lost language and drawing the symbols with my eyes closed. It was far better than how I'd practice alone and with Kirio. I overlapped the symbols with the water once again as I recited the incantations. Internally, my thoughts only focused on easing the urge of bloodlust and nothing more. Once I finished the first step, I inhaled and began the second stage. My thoughts had to focus on controlling the plight for an extended time.

I made my way behind him and poured the water down his back slowly. I sat down and recited the same incantations continually. This was the hard part of the ritual.

The part to stay awake until sunrise repeating the same thing. I hoped for my lack of sleep over the past two months I could get through this, but by the next hour, I felt the need to yawn. I pushed through the tiredness, yet my head began pounding. Squeezing my eyelids tightly, I kept going.

I heard my voice crack and could feel Ichigo shifting in his sitting position.

"Orihime… are you okay?"

I ignored him and held vigorously to my thoughts of controlling his plight. I could feel it shifting trying to escape from the prayers, but I held firm. The pounding in my head increased and the darkness behind my lids started brightening with light. There in the brightness was a large shaped red fabric interlaced with other red strings. They began disintegrating one by one.

I'm almost there.

"Orihime stop! Your nose is bleeding."

"Not yet…" I muttered between each incantation. Through the brightness, the large red fabric of his plight grew thinner but did not break like the rest. It remained attached. I started speaking louder and with more force. The fabric tore at the seams but attached right back. Suddenly one of the shredded strings wrapped itself around the fabric to keep it together.

Then another.

And another.

But I didn't stop trying to unravel them again.

Ichigo started shaking me. "Stop! Open your eyes." The brightness started fading and the fabric began growing again.

No!

It's coming back.

But the light darkened, and I saw the other strings reappearing interlacing once again with the large fabric. Through my thoughts, I reached out to pull the strings to stop it from reattaching, but Ichigo had slapped me drawing me back to reality.

Opening my eyes, I saw him with tears streaming down his face as he held me in his arms.

"Breathe!"

Huh?

"Breathe Orihime!"

My brain must have registered his command and without warning, I took a much-needed breath I didn't know I was holding. I started coughing after a couple of breaths. It was a struggle due to the amount of blood pouring from my nose. I had no other choice but to breathe through my mouth.

"Shit, shit, shit. I knew this was a bad idea." Ichigo rambled taking up his kataginu to wipe my nose.

"Did you slap me?" These were the first words out of my mouth once I was able to control my breathing. He growled at me.

"Seriously? Yes, I had to." He removed the kataginu from my nose and searched my face to check if I was good. "Why did you keep going? I told you not to push yourself."

Sitting up, I glanced around and noticed the moon was no longer in the sky, but the break of dawn was rising. Facing Ichigo, who was still looking at me in concern, I spoke. "How are you feeling?"

"How I feel is nothing compared to how you feel. You were bleeding profusely and had stopped breathing. I'm surprised you didn't pass out."

"I didn't notice." I touched my forehead as the headache I had before dissipated.

"Figures."

I closed my eyes remembering the fabric growing back to its original form. Opening my eyes, I watched Ichigo. He was taking a breath relaxing his nerves once again. "You didn't answer my question. How do you feel?"

He gazed at me. I watched the expressions on his face change from relaxed to worried. "Honestly. The same."

"Oh…" I glanced down at my hands seeing the droplets of blood. I knew my efforts were fruitless, but I thought I could at least reduce the bloodlust far longer than a kiss. "I'm sorry. I should have focused more on just quelling your illness instead of curing it." Looking up at him, I smiled. "We can try again tonight."

"Oh, hell no!" He roared. I flinched back at his loud voice. "We're not doing that again."

"Why not? I know what I have to do to avoid this." I pointed to the dry blood on his kataginu. "I just need to get some rest and we can do it again later." I began to stand up from the floor but lost my balance when the headache I thought had dispelled returned with such force I puked.

"Look at you. Do you really think I would let you do this ritual again? Especially after this type of effect it's having on your body?" I heaved at the lack of contents in my stomach. Ichigo turned his kataginu inside out to help clean me up. I was embarrassed at my state but appreciated his kind gesture. "Let's go." He threw the fabric aside and picked me up bridal style. He carried me to the bath.

He stripped me down after filling the large bath with warm water. While it was filling, I was able to wash out my mouth and chew on a mint leaf to clean my mouth of the stench. He followed suit stripping out of his clothes and joined me. I had no energy to protest as he gently washed my body. His hand slid down my back causing me to lull my head back at how gently he was being.

"That feels good," I muttered as I closed my eyes. He didn't say anything and continued to lather me. "I think I might fall asleep."

"Sleep," Ichigo whispered in my ear.

"Okay," I sighed. "Just wake me up when it's time for the ritual again." I didn't hear him answer or deny me. Slowly I drifted to sleep after I felt him encircle his arms around my waist and let my head fall back onto his shoulder.

Suddenly, I was jolted awake when I felt his fingers inside of me. My mouth fell open letting out a throaty groan as my core clenched around them. The water was still warm enough with steam rising around us. I turned to look back at him, but his other hand squeezed my waist holding me still. "What are you doing?"

"Waking you up the best way I know how."

"I-" I moaned when his thumb grazed my clit.

"Shh. Let me do this for you."

~s~

Ichigo

For the past hour as I watched her sleep, I knew I wasn't going to hold back my blistering desire.

The past few days, weeks, and months I had denied myself the thought and pleasure of laying my eyes on her. Better yet touching her when I happened to see her. But now as she sat between my legs, her warm, soft, curvy body resting against mine, I knew I had to taste her again.

I moved one of my hands down to her thigh and parted them. Gently, I found my prize and played with her clit. After hearing her sigh in her sleep and opening her thighs for me some more, I traced my finger down to her core and slowly glided inside. Even underwater, I could feel how hot her insides were. I sank my teeth into my bottom lip to hold back a groan. She stirred and gradually began moving along with my fingers.

I smirked wondering if she was dreaming about me doing this to her.

Orihime quickly clenched down on my fingers when I added one to the other. She jolted up and let out the sexiest moan I've heard.

"What are you doing?" she moaned as I sank my fingers deeper while my thumb grazed her clit.

"Waking you up the best way I know how." I bit her shoulder and soothed it with a kiss.

"I-" I didn't let her finish as I grazed her clit again.

"Shh. Let me do this for you." As much as I sought out her flavor, she deserved it more. I moved my other hand up to cup her left breast and tenderly pulled at her nipple. She dropped her head back and moaned at my touch. "I don't think you know how much I missed you."

I kissed the side of her neck up to her jaw. "Not as much as I missed you." She pushed back on my throbbing length, rubbing her backside on it. "But we shouldn't be doing this. You haven't earned me yet."

"Earned you?" I muttered close to her ear. She shuddered at my breath blowing there. "Why would I earn something I already own?" I licked her ear before chomping down on the lobe. Her hips bucked at the same time I pulled her nipple and sank my fingers deeper.

Her head swayed from side to side crying out at the torturous feeling. The stimulation of both pain and pleasure wracked her body. "No. I'm not yours to own."

I let go of her ear, licking my bite mark. "Are you sure about that?"

"Positive. You hurt me too many times to have your claim. My body and soul cannot trust you anymore." I stopped my movements at her words. Her body trembled at the loss of pleasure-filled acts. "Why did you stop?" she whined.

I turned her around, letting her legs straddle my lap to face me. I kept my hands around her waist so she wouldn't fall back into the bath. Studying her dazed and confused face, Orihime's eyes were glossed over, and lips kissable.

"Why would I continue after you said you don't trust me?"

Her eyes searched my face before looking down at the small space between us. "Because you chose to let us both suffer then rather let me help you."

"Orihime, we talked about this."

"Did we really?" Her eyes were no longer glazed with lust. "I need you to understand you put a strain on us doubting me. Leaving me in the dark and shutting me out. You can't do that without receiving the consequences."

I dropped my head back as I closed my eyes, not letting her go, and sighed. "I know."

"No, you don't." She grabbed my face so that way I could look at her. "This curing ritual does not only affect you and I. Your mother, father, your sisters, this nation depends on you. How can you become Emperor when you are suffering something as deadly as this? How will you function with so many people's lives in your hands?"

"What about you?"

"What about me?" she questioned. "I am a nobody. A lowly peasant from a village west of this castle. I am nothing but a means to an end for you. Someone you happened to meet on your journey. Someone tasked with the duty as an Inoue."

"You are more than that. This is why we met each other that night after my battle. Walking that path singing a song drawing me to you. It was meant to be." I tightened my hold on her waist. "You're meant to be my Imperial Princess… my wife."

She shook her head. "No, I'm not. That was never written in the stars for me." Her thumbs caressed my cheeks. "I, Orihime Inoue, am the maker of miracles to get you on that throne. You, Ichigo Kurosaki… the Crown Prince soon to be emperor is meant to love another while on that throne."

I inhaled deeply. "What are you saying…?"

Orihime smiled. "Do you trust me?" Her eyes were open windows to a mystery I could not solve while also sparkling like stars on a clear night. I nodded. "Then make love to me again because I miss you."

She leaned down and sealed her lips over mine. Despite the protest and confusion racing through my mind, wondering what she was thinking or planning, I melted into her orbit. The nibble of her incisor on my cut lip made me open my mouth to allow her entrance. Her tongue slid over mine eliciting a groan at the flavor of her that I had missed. I let her take over the kiss momentarily as I embraced her.

Her hand drifted down and stroked me slowly. While she was between us, I moved my hand from her waist past her ass and sank my fingers back into her. With a slow bounce, she rode my fingers, sloshing around the warm water around us. Through each stroke and deep kiss, we whispered soothing words to each other.

"Your naked body should only belong to those who fall in love with your naked soul," I whispered against her lips.

"You need someone that loves your soul more than your body," she whispered back.

She clamped down on my fingers signaling me she was about to come. Her hand could not keep up with how much my fingers moved inside of her. I didn't mind. Just watching her sigh and moan because of me secured me. She tilted her head back, dropping her mouth open and a silent scream escaped as she rippled continuously.

I slid my hand up from around her body, grabbing her face and devouring her mouth as she whimpered from the aftermath of her orgasm. Reaching back between us, I squeezed her clit making her twitch and gasp.

Finally, I buried myself inside of her and felt her clench around me and tug at me hungrily. Her body missed me just as much as I missed her. I closed my eyes and growled, pressing my lips against hers, holding them there as I thrust up, deeper, and harder.

Her thighs clamped down around my hips as I helped her move up and down my shaft. I had never been so clear-headed while I had sex before. With Cirucci, the madness guided me focusing only on my own pleasure. But with Orihime, I needed to see her enjoy herself. To see her fall apart. To see her want me just as much as I want her.

"Ichigo!" she screamed, as I drove up deeper, faster, and harder with sweat festering on our skin. I stared into her eyes and felt her body pull me at repeatedly. She felt so damn good. Hot, wet… and right.

"Shit Orihime… I love you," I couldn't help myself from saying. She might have said I was meant to love someone else, but I called bullshit. She was mine.

Body, spirit, and mind.

Orihime belonged to me alone.

When I exploded, my thrusts became jerky and sporadic as I held my breath and kissed her again, muffling myself from groaning out loud. With a wrinkled brow, I delivered a final thrust, buried my face in her neck, and squeezed my arms around her.

~s~

Orihime

I woke up hearing muffled voices talking outside the fusumas of Ichigo's chambers.

Turning over in the futon, he was still fast asleep unaware of the noise happening. Glancing to the fusumas leading outside to his training area, the sun was not in the sky signaling it was either nighttime or soon to be daybreak. I wasn't sure of the time of day it was.

Pushing the covers off my body, I saw Ichigo's arm draped around my waist. He had not let me go after we made love in the bath. When he spoke those three words, I sensed my world implode in on itself. Those words rippled through me shattering the barrier I had built after Ichigo had diminished my trust.

Somehow, the defenselessness on his face, as he watched me climax, had brought me back down to earth. The hurt words, broken promises, and the looming death hanging over my head did not waver in my heart.

I love him just as dearly.

However, telling him that would solidify the approaching heartbreak I would have to deliver when the ritual happens again.

He didn't know it yet, but after he told me the outcome of performing the ritual, I knew what my decision would be.

Typical of me to decide without him as he had done with me. Not typical… hypocritical. But this was one decision we both could live with. I had given him hope when I told him his heart was not mine to give. Yet, after returning here, he slowly made love to me again without taking his eyes off me.

Each slow stroke meant more each time we connected. Tears fell from both of our eyes as if speaking our truths. Looking at him now, I couldn't tell if he knew what I was planning and wouldn't stop me or was clueless and trusted me enough to make the right choice. I reached to caress his sleeping face one more time.

A soft voice behind the fusumas pulled me from my thoughts as I dropped my hand.

"Your Highness and Lady Orihime. It is Kirio." Ichigo sat up rubbing his eyes as he glanced at my naked breasts littered with hickeys and then at the fusumas.

"Cover up," he whispered, getting up from the futon to grab his robe hanging on the byōbu (folding screen). I watched his stiff morning wood bounce between his thighs as he tucked his arms inside the sleeves before it was covered. "Stop being naughty." I looked up at his face which was smiling at me.

Blushing, I pulled the quilt back over me and turned to face the fusumas.

"Come in Kirio," Ichigo finally answered moving back towards me.

The fusumas slid open and Kirio stepped in. Her appearance was always immaculate whenever I saw her. The tan kosode with Tsubaki (red camellias) embroidered on it, her purple hair pulled back in a low bun, and her skin smooth without makeup. She was an epitome of a senior lady-in-waiting for the Empress.

"I apologize for the intrusion late into the evening." She glanced down at me. "Lord Jūshirō wishes to speak with you Lady Orihime."

"Me?" I felt Ichigo stiffen beside me. I glanced at him questioningly. But his face did not give away his thoughts as he focused on Kirio.

"Yes. As for you, Your Highness. The Emperor and Empress wish for you to join them for dinner. I believe it's to discuss the wedding happening tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" We both said simultaneously. We glanced at each other and then back at Kirio. Ichigo spoke first. "How are we having a wedding tomorrow? I didn't agree to this. Neither of us did."

"Hench the dinner invitation." Kirio put her hand on her hip. "Get dressed both of you."

"Hold on." Ichigo stood up. "This is happening way too fast for my liking. What is the rush?"

She dropped her hand from her hip and glanced at me. Her green eyes gazed at me softly. "I guess if you must know. The Empress believes you, Lady Orihime, is pregnant with the Crown Prince's heir."

It was like the air around us evaporated. My mouth dropped open in shock and Ichigo inhaled sharply. She looked between us and smiled at our expressions. "It is not official yet until a physician checks you, but your lack of appetite, suffering to keep food down, the smells, and your mood swings. She knows it and I agreed with her."

I fisted the quilt and slowly looked up at Ichigo. He was already looking down at me.

We're having a baby.

To Be Continued…

Author's Notes:

The next chapter will be worthwhile.

Until Next Time!

P.S. I uploaded a new story. A Weakness Prelude called Bet. The story is about Kisuke and Yoruichi. If you're interested, please check it out.