Title: Daylight Chatter and Sunset Wishes

Characters: Ichigo, Orihime, Tatsuki with references to Uryuu and Isshin

Rating: PG

Authors Note: Hi everyone! This is my entry for FLOL Fifth Annual Tanabata Festival contest. Its a long time since I have written anything so it was really exciting to write this.

Special Thanks: I can't thank e_ko, Star and others enough for not only betaing my fanfic but also inspiring me to write something. Its really fun participating in a competition again.

Go and catch a falling star...

John Donne

It was a sweltering July morning, made even hotter by the humidity in the atmosphere.

So when Inoue Orihime collapsed on her way home, onlookers rightfully offered their assistance, concern that the poor dear had suffered heatstroke.

And like everything else in Karukara town, the truth was a lot more interesting than it seemed.

Tatsuki was rightfully furious.

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, YOU IDIOT?"

Orihime winced, head bowed guiltily as her best friend loomed over her. Tatsuki had been her rescuer after her unfortunate collapse, and concern was still visible on her face. Despite Orihime's heavy protest against visiting Kurosaki clinic, Tatsuki had spent the rest of the morning speaking to Isshin, Orihime sitting mutely drinking water in the air conditioned kitchen.

"Sorry Tatsuki-chan." Orihime smiled, scratching her head slightly. "It was just so hot and I was a bit thirsty so..."

"That is no excuse!" Tatsuki snapped, folding her arms in frustration. "I was only two blocks away, closer to the store than you were. Besides, you know you're not supposed to leave the house alone in your condition!"

Orihime bit her lip, putting a hand over her more than swollen tummy. Several months gone, and into the 'difficult period' as Urahara put it, moving around was to be kept at a minimum. Pregnancy in general was difficult enough, but with a baby such as hers and Ichigo's-

Orihime's eyes widened. Ichigo.

"Y-you didn't call him did you?" She asked, eyes practically pleading. Tatsuki merely frowned in return.

"By 'him' I assume you're referring to your brain-dead husband?"

"Ichigo-kun isn't brain-dead." Orihime insisted, ignoring Tatsuki's raised eyebrow. After a moment of silence, the raven-haired woman sighed, sat down, and reached for an untouched cup of water.

"No, I didn't call him." She replied briskly, bringing the cup to her lips. "But knowing how Isshin is, Ichigo is bound to find out soon enough."

Orihime sulked into her seat, the guilt returning. He had been so worried lately, becoming more and more protective and less attentive to his work. His frequent visits to Seireitei, which had intensified in the last year, had become all the more stressful to him when her pregnancy started. She could feel the guilt in his eyes each time he left, in spite of her insistence that she would be fine by herself. Reassuring him that Uryuu was close by (which only irritated him) and his father being a phone call away (which seemed to frustrate him further) were the two tools she had used to insist that the trip was worth it this time. That and the firm and reliable hand of Tatsuki-chan. The last thing she wanted to do was burden him with more concerns.

"I didn't want to bother anyone." Orihime whispered numbly "I just wanted to do something myself."

Tatsuki looked up to her best friend, instantly recognizing the look in her eyes. This girl, really, she thought.

"I get that about you Orihime. You don't want to bother anyone." said Tatsuki, flicking her bangs away from her eyes, "but that still doesn't change the fact you shouldn't go out by yourself. You heard Urahara and Isshin. You're high risk now, and your spiritual pressure is all over the place."

Orihime bit her lip. "I know."

"More importantly, you aren't being a bother." Tatsuki tried to ease Orihime with a small smile. "You need to relax okay? You don't want to be a stressed out mommy do you?"

"No," answered Orihime.

Looking Orihime up and down, Tatsuki stood and walked briskly, kneeling beside her best friend. With only a few months left before the birth, Orihime was glowing, but even this did not remove the tired look in her eyes. Tatsuki could see Orihime tense up under her gaze.

"Hey, no need to act tough about this." She paused, steeling her nerves. "I know it's a bit scary..."

Orihime shook her head wildly.

"I'm not scared." She said, pouting. She was fine, honestly! Everyone was working way too hard for her sake.

Tatsuki waved her hand dismissively. "Don't lie," she replied, scoffing. "No one is going to chide you for it. Besides, Ichig-"

"ORIHIME?"

Both women jumped, Tatsuki nearly falling over all together. Startled, Orihime turned to the end of the kitchen, the familiar voice more frantic than she had wanted.

"I-Ichigo-kun?" She called out. Loud frantic steps made their way down the halls to the doorway of the kitchen, revealing a dishevelled Ichigo, panic clearly set in his eyes.

"Tatsuki?" He managed to splutter before turning to his wife. "Orihime? Are you alright? I hea-"

"She's just fine." Tatsuki snapped impatiently, rising to the balls of her feet to face Ichigo properly. He had managed to make his way to Orihime, practically suffocating her in an embrace as she protested and insisted she was alright. His eyes said it all. He must have rushed away from his mission without a single thought.

Tatsuki groaned. This was way too typical of Ichigo.

"It was heatstroke. I've spoken to your father already. He's going to come over in an hour or so. Besides, there was no need for you to rush back here for this."

"No reason?" Ichigo repeated, staring darkly at the other woman. "She collapsed! What if something happened? What about the baby? Where were you anyway? You where supposed to be watching her..."

"Please don't blame Tatsuki-chan." Orihime interjected, looking up at him with a silent plea for peace. She should have known this was going to happen. "Tatsuki-chan did nothing wrong, she was only gone fo-"

"The last person in this room who needs to lecture me is you," snapped Tatsuki, ignoring the silent pleas from Orihime. "Point is, there was no need to you to come back, everyone here was keeping an eye on her. What do you want me to do, tie her to the bed?"

"Tatsuki-chan..."

"You don't get it, do you? Orihime needs support not someone who just neglects her to do their own thi-"

"Neglects her? Neglects her?" Tatsuki spat out furiously. "Who the hell do you think you are, talking about me neglecting Orihime?"

The heat of the exchange seemed suffocating. Orihime practically leapt from her seat, hoping her body in between them would lessen the tension. "Please, it isn't bad. I-I am okay, its just-"

"Because from what I remember, you haven't done anything of significance for a long time now buddy!"

"I have work!" Ichigo replied, angry at her implication "Don't you think I want to be here all the time with her? That I hate leaving her alone to do all this by herself?"

"Duties? Don't make excuses. We're all trying to take care of Orihime. Unlike you, who tries to make up reasons to run away when things get difficult."

Tatsuki could feel Orihime wince and instantly regretted her words. Ichigo deflated slightly, his eyes no longer staring in blinding anger but now in stunned sadness.

"That isn't fair Tatsuki, you know damn well it isn't." he muttered looking at the floor, the shame creeping over him. Some part of him wondered if he really was running away, taking on all these duties requested and leaving Orihime by herself.

Orihime's heart tugged when she saw his face. She didn't like the way that Tatsuki folded her hands either, the guilt seemed to be eating away at her. It was like this whenever they argued: one of them always ended up saying something they would instantly regret. Since their senior year in high school, the topic of their disagreement was her, and the number of arguments had only intensified since she married Ichigo. She bit her lip, fleeting ideas of solutions running through her head, before forcing a smile on her face.

"Ichigo-kun." said Orihime, now tugging at his arm slightly. "Don't be angry with Tatsuki-chan, she's been taking good care of me. And Tatsuki-chan, Ichigo-kun has been very busy lately, but he really tries to come home as often as he can."

Ichigo and Tatsuki gave each other a look, and then both huffed and faced away stubbornly. The last thing Orihime now was more stress over something so stupid. Furthermore, neither wanted to be the one to make her cry. Ichigo decided to take his grievance with Tatsuki up later, when Orihime was asleep, or at least out of ear-shot. Tatsuki in turn made her way past Ichigo, breaking Orihime's grip on him to place her hands around her friend's shoulder. This was always her sign of a silent apology. Ichigo's non-verbal reply confirmed it - he merely sighed and scratched the back of his head.

The squeeze on her shoulder instantly relieved Orihime, who released the breath she hadn't noticed herself holding. At least there was calm now. She rubbed her stomach in a soothing manner. What a world this child will be born into.

Without warning, Orihime gave out a loud yawn. Almost instantly, Ichigo's brows furrowed.

"Have you had your nap yet?"

Orihime blinked. "Ehh?"

Tatsuki looked at her wristwatch frowning. "He's right, its way past noon now. You should have been asleep 40 minutes ago."

"B-but I'm not sleepy."

"No excuses Orihime, you heard what the midwife said."

"What, you mean Tsukabishi-san?" Orihime laughed, looking at both of her loved ones who were now wearing the same type of frown. "He isn't qualified for that!"

"Who cares? He knows more about this stuff than anyone else here," Ichigo said, ignoring his wife's spluttering. "There's no excuse, off to bed you go." And with that, he began to lead her out of the kitchen.

"B-but, but I..."

"Don't try to get out of it Orihime, he has my permission to carry you if he has to."

Orihime pouted as she was marched back to the room she had abandoned that morning, her overprotective husband and equally protective best friend behind her.

Maybe the argument would have been better.

"Orihime?"

"Hmm?"

"Did you really leave home just to get a bottle of water?"

It had been a few hours since Tatsuki left, and the sun was beginning to set from the window adjacent to the mattress in their cosy bedroom. Isshin had come and gone, telling her off more than Tatsuki did but within a warmth that she saw as fatherly. After briefly having a sparing match with Ichigo, he had given her another look over with medication, and promptly sent her straight back to bed. Tessai was expected to show up sometime that evening.

Orihime turned over, facing Ichigo, who was staring at her curvaceous form with a warm look in his eyes.

"It wasn't just a bottle of water." Orihime admitted sheepishly. "I was going to get some fruits and ramen too!"

Ichigo frowned. "Orihime."

Orihime pouted. "I was just trying to be funny."

Still frowning, Ichigo made his way onto the bed, ignoring Orihime's squeak as he lay down beside her. As he began to shallowly trace circles on Orihime's stomach, he noticed how tired she looked, in spite of all his attempts to make her relax. She hadn't slept well that afternoon and it appeared her tossing and turning was becoming worse.

"I know you want to do things yourself." he admitted, "but you just have to keep still for now, okay?"

Orihime nodded, sinking deeper into the soft pillows. It was hard for her to admit, but she enjoyed Ichigo's presence, his attentiveness, and the way his scent surrounded her. She couldn't remember the last time they had both been so close and intimate that didn't mean Ichigo leaping into action a moment later.

Orihime bit her lip and concentrated. Noticing this, Ichigo curved his fingers into her empty palm.

"What's wrong?" He asked gently. "Are you in pain?"

Orihime shook her head. "Just thinking."

"About what?"

Orihime blushed modestly. "Nothing important."

Brows furrowed, Ichigo watched as Orihime buried her head in her pillow. Giving a pause, Ichigo began to speak again.

"Are you scared?" he asked softly. Instantly, Ichigo saw Orihime's body tense up. Reaching over to cup her cheek, Ichigo was surprised when she sat up and blurrily smiled at him.

"I am scared." She admitted honestly. "Everything is just a bit scary."

She swallowed before pausing. Even now she felt Ichigo's heated gaze on her, which made the next words out of her mouth more difficult to say.

"I don't know what I should do." She admitted sadly. "Doing all this."

Ichigo blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Doing this. Being a family." Orihime, said trying to smile at him. "I don't know if I can do it." Ichigo gaped at her. Noting his confusion Orihime continued on. "I know it's not fair, you've been so worried too and here I am being like this..."

"You haven't done anything wrong."

"But I have." She insisted, choking back as sob. "You've been working so hard and all I'm doing is crying. Everything is so confusing to me, and I don't know why."

Watching as her lips began to quiver, Ichigo sat up beside her. He brushed the bangs away from her face, feeling the wet and silent tears that were streaming down her cheeks. Orihime looked up at him in sorrow. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Don't ever apologize like that."

"B-but you went away from work!" She sobbed, her head against his chest. "And all I'm doing is being silly."

"Orihime."

"Everyone is worried about me, and being so kind." Orihime wept, as Ichigo soothing arms enveloped her. "And I don't know if I can do anything. Always worrying Tatsuki-chan, Uryu-kun and Isshin-san. And you're always being guilty about being away."

Ichigo eyes widened at her words. He thought he was getting better at hiding things from her but it had been proven unsuccessful. He knew it was going to be like this. He was warned by his father, heck he was warned by Rukia all the way up to Ukitake! Still, this guilt was nearly unbearable. However, it wasn't as unbearable as watching Orihime beat herself up about something like this.

"I'm supposed to worry about you." Ichigo stated frowning. "It's what I do. Remember my name right?"

"I know." Orihime sniffed. "But I don't want you to feel bad about going away. Its your duty right? You're proud of yourself aren't you?"

"Of course I'm proud." Ichigo responded firmly. "I don't think there's anything else I could do that apart from being a shinigami."

With this, he lifted her chin and wiped the remaining tears from her eyelids. "But you make me proud too. It's okay to be scared. I-I'm really scared too."

Orihime felt her heart beat quicken dramatically. It was so hard for him to admit moments of weakness, so when he did she always felt like she was floating. Using her silence as permission to continue, he reached down and grabbed her hand once again. "Remember what you told me? You know, last year during the Star Festival?"

Orihime wriggles her eyebrows. "No."

Ichigo paused. "You know, about Orihime? How much she must have been scared, even if she knew she'd see Hikoboshi the next year?"

Orihime furrowed her brow before her eyes widened in recollection.

"Ah!"

"Yes, ahh." Ichigo chuckled in return. "Do you remember all of it?"

"Yeah." Orihime said, shifting the weight of her feet to a more comfortable position. "She'd worry because the wait was so long, and anything could happen over a year. But she always did see him again didn't she?"

"She did." Ichigo said, placing his free hand on her head. "So no matter what happens, we'll be okay in the end. "

"Just as long as we keep wishing?"

"Just as long as we keep wishing." Ichigo repeated leaning in to kiss her forehead. "So don't go around feeling bad for being scared. We're both with you, okay?"

Orihime nodded and blinked in expectation of tears that never came.

Both she thought in new wonder. In a few months, it would be three of them in this house, someone with new daydreams wishes and expecations. Someone with new fears, nightmares and worries.

Someone like her. And him. And inbetween.

She rubbed her stomach with sudden clarity. A new life with new wishes born. Hers. Ichigo's. A little sprig in spring about to sprout up.

Almost like a star...

With the warmth of his breath on her shoulder, Orihime relaxed. The world felt full and weightless at the same time. Before long, she felt her eyelashes drooping before they closed, the gentle strength of Ichigo's arms comforting her worries.

"Ichigo-kun?" she asked sleepily.

"Yeah?"

"You know what I'm wishing for right now?"

Ichigo gave pause. "Donuts and an alien baby?"

Orihime managed to giggle. "No, it's a lot more personal."

"More personal?" asked Ichigo. Orihime lifted her head and gave him one final smile.

"Go back to work, okay? We want you to go back. For our pride." Orihime rested her head once more. "We wish that with all our hearts."

Surprised at the outburst, Ichigo managed to return her smile, feeling her rest her head on his shoulder as she finally drifted back to sleep.

"Sure thing."

And with that, he wondered if he was too old to make more wishes too.

Starlight, Star bright,
The first star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might,
Have the wish I wish tonight.

Nursery Rhyme