Three years later.
In a hospital room. Ryunosuke was holding his newborn daughter with an indescribable expression on his face.
"Those distinctive flat eyes. Is this a family trait?"
"If you don't like it, give her back! I'll put her right back where she came from!"
Himeno, who had just given birth, lay in the hospital bed with her small sharp canine teeth bared, glaring at him with genuine ferocity.
Ryunosuke accepted his situation and brought the baby back to her arms, which closed around the child immediately and with great tenderness.
"I didn't say I disliked anything. I was only commenting on the family's distinctive eye shape. Our precious little daughter is wonderful."
"Hmph!" Himeno held the baby close and refused to look at him.
Ryunosuke wrapped his arms around both of them. He quietly concluded that Himeno was experiencing the hormonal turbulence that comes after giving birth and was simply more volatile than usual. Patience was the only correct response.
Himeno looked down at her newborn. The baby's skin was all wrinkled and her face was scrunched, giving her the appearance of a very small elderly person. Without quite meaning to, Himeno murmured, "She looks a bit rough."
Even as she said it, she didn't loosen her hold on the baby for a single second.
Ryunosuke tried to explain. "All newborns look like that. None of them arrive already beautiful."
"Oh? You seem very knowledgeable about this." Himeno's jealousy ignited immediately.
He had so many women, and she was not the first to give birth to his child. He had certainly witnessed this scene before. That thought was enough to set her off entirely. Her emotions were running close to the surface right now, and it didn't take much. Ryunosuke spent a considerable amount of time coaxing her back into calm before she and the baby finally fell asleep.
◆━⊰✿✧✿⊱━◆
Back to the present.
Himeno arrived at the place where the Espada gathered, which had since been renamed the Gotei 13. With membership exceeding ten people, Ai had decided to update the title accordingly.
Ai herself had begun to feel something like emotional numbness. There were already plenty of members. Why were more still arriving?
Himeno took the eleventh position and, while she was at it, also claimed the twelfth position on behalf of Honami, who knew nothing about any of this yet. The Gotei 13 now needed only one more member to be complete.
There was a reason Himeno was keeping this from Honami. She was afraid that if Honami found out all at once, she might not be able to handle it and spiral somewhere dark. After discussing it with Ryunosuke and Ai, they had agreed to keep it quiet for now and wait until Honami was more settled before introducing the truth carefully and gradually.
For now, that was the best Himeno could do. She went back to the balcony.
Today was Valentine's Day, the day for giving chocolate. And Honami and Ryunosuke had only made things official the night before.
As promised, Ryunosuke came back to find Himeno and draped his coat over her shoulders.
Himeno received it with her characteristic flat stare and no word of thanks, because as far as she was concerned, this was simply what she was owed. She had been running around helping this man, even serving as a bridge to keep Honami in the dark. She had contributed both effort and mental energy on his behalf.
So what was wrong with him putting a coat on her shoulders? Himeno pulled it around herself with the quiet satisfaction of someone collecting a debt that was rightfully theirs.
Ryunosuke hadn't particularly wanted to pursue Honami himself, but Himeno had more or less maneuvered him into it by arguing that it was his fault Class A's leader was walking around in a daze, and that therefore the responsibility was his. It was a stretch of logic, but Himeno had the leverage to make it stick.
Himeno produced a chocolate-flavored lollipop, put it in her mouth, and said in a casual tone, "It's Valentine's Day today."
"So it seems." Ryunosuke replied, hands in his pockets, looking out at the distance before glancing sideways at her. "So where's my Valentine's chocolate?"
Himeno pulled the lollipop out with an expression of mild offense. "You've already been playing with my feelings. What more do you want?"
"Fair point." Ryunosuke conceded, and stopped asking.
Then Himeno extended the lollipop she had just been eating toward him, her cheeks going noticeably pink. "It's chocolate flavored. Take it if you want. If you think it's too much, throw it away."
This had been the plan all along. There was no other reason she would have bothered bringing a chocolate-flavored lollipop. The entire point was the satisfaction of an indirect kiss. She had done so much for this man. Was asking for a small reward unreasonable?
Even as she said it, her face was thoroughly red and the area around her head was faintly steaming. Ryunosuke took it without hesitation and put it in his mouth, making it perfectly clear he had no objection whatsoever. After the night before, being picky about an indirect contact would have been absurd.
Seeing he hadn't refused, Himeno relaxed and pretended to be indifferent. "Good?"
Ryunosuke took it out briefly. "Not bad at all."
Himeno leaned in suddenly. "Really? Let me try."
"Didn't you just have it yourself? Why would you need to—"
Before the sentence was finished, Himeno swept her hair back and boldly took the lollipop back into her own mouth. With her face turned slightly away, she said:
"It does taste good. Different from last night somehow."
Ryunosuke's face went completely red and he vacated the area at speed. Himeno watched his retreating back and murmured, "Coward."
But she couldn't keep the smile off her face. She bounced lightly with each step as she left the balcony.
Once he was out of sight, Ryunosuke leaned against a wall and got his breathing under control. Himeno had nearly done him in, mentally.
(When did I fail to notice she was this skilled at all of this?)
He shook his head. He was prepared to call the evening a small defeat and move on. As he was about to leave, he ran into Honami. Both of them turned pink the moment their eyes met, thinking back to the previous night.
Ryunosuke managed an awkward greeting. "Hey. Good evening, Ichinose."
"Oh! Good evening, Akasaka-kun!" Honami's voice wavered with nerves.
Neither of them knew what to say next. The silence was quite something. Just as Ryunosuke was preparing to excuse himself, Honami called out.
"Wait just a moment! I have something for you."
He stopped as she rummaged through her bag with rising urgency.
"Hmm? That's odd, I was sure I put it in here last night. Let me look, ah, there it is."
Honami produced a small box of chocolate with a sweet, flustered expression. "This is for yesterday. I'm giving it today instead."
Ryunosuke accepted it with both hands. "Thank you. I'll return the gesture in a month."
[Note: In Japan, men typically return the favor about a month after Valentine's Day.]
Honami looked genuinely happy and returned to something closer to her natural brightness. "Then I'll be looking forward to it very much~"
They parted ways. A little further along, he encountered Airi and Haruka, who handed over their chocolates as a pair and each extracted a promise of a return gift in a month. He accepted with a slightly strained smile, and the two of them went off arm in arm like they had been doing it for years.
Then came Kei.
"Um, happy Valentine's Day. This is from me." She said, with her face carefully turned to the side.
He accepted it. His bag was now home to four boxes. "Thank you. I'll return it in a month."
Kei's eyes lit up for a brief moment before the tsundere shield came back up. "Hmph. Whether you do or not is up to you. I'm not really expecting anything."
She looked pointedly away, while her expression said very clearly: I am absolutely expecting it.
Ryunosuke could only think to himself that the performance would be considerably more convincing if she looked like she meant it. After he promised, she went on her way looking distinctly cheerful.
A few steps later, Masumi appeared looking characteristically full of herself.
(Hasn't this day ended yet? There's more?)
Masumi handed over her own chocolate and also Miki's, as Miki had been too nervous to come herself. Two boxes. Arisu, who had mobility limitations, had apparently decided she wanted to deliver hers personally for the added significance.
Masumi tried for a flat tone. "Here. Valentine's chocolate. And this one is from Yamamura-san. You really are something else, you know that?"
Ryunosuke accepted both with both hands. "Thank you, Kamuro. Give Yamamura-san my regards."
"Hmph." Masumi left without another word, but she did pass the message along.
Ryunosuke looked at the two boxes in his hands and the four already in his bag. Six boxes total. He was starting to think he could eat chocolate in place of rice for two days.
He put them away and headed back to his room, where Arisu had apparently been waiting for some time. She was dressed in a white Santa Claus outfit with a matching beret and looked exceptionally lovely. She held out an elegantly wrapped box.
"Haah." Ryunosuke exhaled quietly. He didn't know what to say. In the middle of the frozen night, he had no idea how long she had been out here waiting. Long enough that her face was flushed from the cold, which suggested at least two hours.
He brought her inside and made her a warm cup of tea. Arisu immediately claimed his lap as her seat, which she considered her rightful compensation. After waiting two and a half hours outside, a little extra indulgence was not unreasonable.
She fell soundly asleep against him, apparently intending to spend the rest of the evening right there.
Ryunosuke couldn't quite allow that, because his schedule was demanding. He was due at Ai's room to keep her company for a gaming session, and Suzune was also planning to cook dinner for him. Time was limited.
Arisu, however, didn't make things difficult for him. After about three hours together, she let him go. Ryunosuke carried her back to her dormitory in the princess carry style.
Arisu had her arms around his neck and whispered softly, "I love you. Ryunosuke."
"I know."
He then went to Ai's room. Megumi was already there, deeply engaged in a game alongside Ai. The two of them had been effectively living together, even if Megumi's participation was not entirely voluntary.
The moment Megumi saw Ryunosuke come in, her eyes lit up and she threw down her controller. She was halfway to running toward him when she remembered that her wrist was still connected to Ai's by a chain.
Ai, who had been focused on the game, was suddenly yanked sideways and dragged partway across the floor.
Megumi felt the sharp pull on her own arm and thought with considerable irritation: (That chain is genuinely infuriating.)
Ai had been on the verge of genuine anger over having her game disrupted, but the moment she saw Ryunosuke she dropped her controller as well. Her boyfriend was simply more important than any game.
He spent about two hours with the two of them before excusing himself.
All the women had now been visited except for two. His bag had grown noticeably heavier with the addition of Ai's and Megumi's boxes. He was now carrying nine.
He went next to the library, where Hiyori was waiting.
Hiyori gave him her chocolate and asked him to stay and read with her for a few hours.
"You already take up more of my time than anyone else, and you still want more?" he said with weary resignation.
Hiyori pouted with precisely calibrated adorableness. "That's usually. This is now. Are you going to keep me company or not? Jiiiiii~"
She fixed him with a stare so unreasonably endearing that he had no rational defense against it.
Ryunosuke had always been particularly soft with Hiyori. He had never quite been able to explain it.
(Erina, from somewhere far away: "Of course he has. She's my cousin.")
After four hours in the library, well into the late night, Ryunosuke finally had to leave. He walked Hiyori back to her dormitory before returning to his own, where a girl with long black hair was finishing dinner preparations.
He exhaled with deep contentment. He dropped his bag onto the bed; it landed with a thud. Eleven boxes of chocolate, counting Himeno's lollipop. The weight of it was something he had not anticipated. He had considered stopping by for Yotsuba's portion as well, but Nino was still treating him like an enemy, so he decided to let that particular situation wait.
Suzune had laid out the table neatly. Four side dishes and a substantial soup, all of it made for under 2000 points.
Ryunosuke was genuinely impressed. She was going to make a remarkable wife. This time Suzune didn't wait and ate alongside him, which was becoming more natural between them since the night things had changed.
As he sat on the tatami and enjoyed the meal, watching Suzune across from him in her home clothes looking quietly dignified, he said without really thinking: "My wife~ where's my chocolate?"
He was now calling her that openly and without embarrassment, and Suzune had stopped objecting to it.
She reached under the table and produced a small, neatly wrapped box. For her, what mattered was the sincerity behind it, not the size.
When Ryunosuke immediately moved to open it and eat some, Suzune stopped him with a firm look.
"Don't eat sweets during a meal. If I see that kind of habit again, I won't cook for you anymore."
"R-right." He withdrew his hand immediately.