mating season

Chapter Nine

Rukia and Renji nodded to each other, they knew this was where Ichigo has been. They could sense his reiatsu behind this door. They both kicked in the door at the same time, expecting Ichigo to be chained up and badly beaten on the other side. They did not expect to find a naked Grimmjow in bed with a very naked and very large Ichigo, who were both groggy looking and starting to sit up in the huge bed.

"Wha' tha fuck?" Grimmjow growled, rubbing his eye with one hand. He was most certainly not a morning person.

Ichigo's eyes were barely open when he looked over to the doorway, expecting it to be Nel who frequently barged in like this, demanding attention. His eyes popped wide open when he saw his two best shinigami friends. "Rukia? Renji?" He asked, baffled.

"Ichigo! We finally found you!" Rukia cried out.

"Holy shit, Ichigo! You're naked!" Renji yelled, pointing to his friend.

Ichigo remembered that his friend was right and instantly threw the sheets over his lower half, also making sure Grimm was covered as well.

"And what the fuck are you doin' in bed with that espada trash?" Renji asked, raising a tattooed eyebrow. He took a few steps closer to his friend, one hand on the hilt of Zabimaru, ready for a fight.

"Uh, Renji…" Ichigo started to say, but then his over-eager friend continued with the questioning.

"And why are you so fat?"

"Oh, well you s-"Ichigo started.

"It's only been about four months since we last saw you, how could you have gained so much weight?"

Rukia only kept looking between Renji and Ichigo, unable to say anything. She was waiting to hear what Ichigo had to say, though even she knew Renji was being very harsh. Nobody wanted to hear about their weight gain – nobody.

"Renji, I'm –"

"Oh shit, don't tell me this is some Hansel and Gretel crap, this piece of shit is fattening you up and gonna shove you in an oven and eat your soul!"

"Hey, no, Renji!"

"That's what those fuckers do to gain power, Ichi, we both know that!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP RENJI!" Ichigo yelled at the top of his lungs. When the room was silent and everyone's eyes were wide, Ichigo sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Renji, I'm not fat. I'm pregnant."

Renji choked a laugh. "The hell you are! 'Cause I'm Mickey Mouse. Come on, we'll get you some training and put you on a diet, you'll be fine. Let's get the fuck back home."

"He's serious, dipshit," Grimmjow growled, getting up from the bed. He stalked over to the loud, tattooed redhead and glared down at him. Grimmjow may only have been an inch or two taller than Renji, but with the anger in Grimmjow's eyes it didn't matter, he looked fierce and scary as hell. "Ichigo is carryin' my cubs. And don' you DARE think ya are gonna take him anywhere."

Rukia looked at her friend who was still in bed and then rushed over to his side. "Ichigo! Tell the truth; are you pregnant with this Espada's children?" Her eyes were pleading that he says no, though she was really betting he was indeed pregnant, judging by his figure. When Ichigo nodded, Rukia hung her head. "What now, Ichigo? How can we go back? You'll likely be executed; for sure the young will be put to death, for being the offspring of a hollow."

Shaking his head, Ichigo replied, "I'm not going back there."

"What did you just say?!" Renji barked. He sprinted to the bedside, next to Rukia, waiting for more to the story.