games for days
grimmjow/tatsuki
He was like a cat, it was only natural for him to stalk something before he decided how he wanted to play with it.
first bleach fic, character critic is welcome.
switches from grimm's to tatsuki's pov
If there was anything about humanity that Grimmjow would attest to having in his repertoire of fantastic qualities, it would be stalking. Some (Ichigo) would most likely tell him this was not something to boast about, but he couldn't care less. He was a cat in a previous life (and it was previous, Ichigo made sure of that every time the orange hair jackass 'just happened' to come by Urahara's shop), it was only natural for him to stalk something that interested him while he debated either killing and eating it or just playing with it until it died and leaving it to rot.
Which was what he was doing with Arisawa Tatsuki at the moment; lingering on the roof edge of one of the stupid shops that Orihime always managed to somehow convince him into going to when he least expects it. He was watching the dark hair girl stroll cockily down the sidewalk without any attention paid to her surroundings. But she was Ichigo's friend, and for some reason, Ichigo's friends always had something hidden up their fucking sleeves. He was itching to play with her, maybe bat her around a bit to see if she'd fight back and how much. There was what looked like the less deadly half of a naginata strapped to her back, and he bet she knew how to use it.
It was tempting to jump down and see.
But, he sighed instead and pulled back as she disappeared down a street that was too brightly lit for him to go unnoticed. His foot slipped against one of the looser shingles on the roof he was loitering on, it scraped loudly; Grimmjow barely made it out of the light before Tatsuki turned in the direction the sound came from. Her eyes narrowed against the bright streetlamp, casting sharp shadows against her face. Her mouth twisted downward, and she took just a second too long to turn and continue home.
Grimmjow kept his senses on her until she was unlocking her front door, then turned and used his sonído back to Urahara's shop where he was allowed to inhabit. He slept wherever the fuck he wanted, and most nights it was on the roof. It figured that he could only sleep beneath the stars after an eternity of Hueco Mundo and endless moon filled nights. Grimmjow planted his heels firmly against the edge of the rain grate and dropped onto his back, arms folding behind his head.
He exhaled slowly, eyes narrowed slightly up at the sky. Arisawa. Yeah, she would keep him entertained.
.
Ichigo brought her along with him one day for one of his talks with Urahara. She spent the majority of his time with the shop keeper leaning against the building wall outside; arms crossed over her chest with one foot propped up on the hose spigot. Grimmjow was leering at her over the edge of the roof, his blue hair falling into his eyes. Tatsuki sighed.
"What do you want?" his grin widened wickedly, not even pretending to be shocked that she knew he was there. He gripped the storm drain and vaulted himself over the edge, landing in a crouch in front of her. She blinked at him in surprise, her brown eyes wide. They narrowed at him in a second, her mouth twisting downward. "Impressive." She clearly thought it wasn't, but then her eyes wandered to the bone on his face, up to his hair, down to the hole through his abdomen and they widened slightly once again.
"Extremely," he said when her eyes blinked back up to his. He hadn't planned on showing himself to her quite so soon into the game, but maybe this could be fun. He stepped closer, into her clearly marked personal space and craned his head down until his mouth was near her ear. He felt her suppress a shiver against him, and snapped his teeth at her (in what he considered) playfully. "See ya."
.
Later, he'd heard her ask Ichigo what the Arrancar form of flash step was. Ichigo snorted, and asked her why, earning him a thump against the back of his head.
"Biiiitch…"
"Just tell me, Kurosaki!"
Ichigo huffed, and muttered the word under his breath, too low for Grimmjow to hear. The smallish red haired one interrupted their conversation before Ichigo could ask again what Tatsuki wanted the term for, and he soon forgot she even asked. But on the way back to her home, Tatsuki kept herself alert. Even though she had insisted she could take care of herself and left Ichigo at the street their houses intersected on.
"Are you stalking me?" she asked, feeling the pressure of his reiatsu as she passed under the low hanging tree he was perched in. He snorted and leaned against the trunk. She did pause to wait for a response, it wasn't until she was twenty feet away did he decide to answer her.
"Yes."
She froze, he sounded so nonchalant about it, like he was stating a fact. She turned her head and focused somewhere in the branches where she assumed he was. "Why?"
This time he stayed silent. It was almost five minutes before Tatsuki straightened and turned away. "Tch."
She locked her bedroom window and closed her curtain when she got to her room. It wouldn't be enough if he wanted to get in, but it made her mortal heart feel better all the same.
.
"What does he do for Urahara?" asked Tatsuki, dropping her back against the chain link fence next to Ichigo and Orihime during lunch. She stared into the sun, eyes narrowed and her mouth pulled tight. Ichigo had a mouthful of Yuzu's cooking, there were sprouts hanging dangerously between his lips. Orihime frowned and leaned forward to look up at her.
"Who, Tatsuki-chan?"
"Grimmjow."
Ichigo swallowed hard, grimacing, and then gaped at her. "He doesn't do anything. Why do you care?"
Tatsuki kicked him in the hip and shrugged. "Just wondering. He doesn't seem to do much."
"He's former Espada," snorted Ichigo, rubbing his side. "There's not much he can do."
"He trains with Ichigo sometimes," Orihime said.
"He's in hiding, Arisawa-san. From the other Arrancar who escaped Hueco Mundo during Aizen's invasion to Karakura Town," interrupted Ishida, walking up to their little group. He stopped at Orihime's feet and handed her something small and wrapped in glossy red paper. She squealed and jumped to her feet, taking the package and holding it against her chest.
"Thank you, Ishida-kun!" she cried. Ichigo frowned up at her, looking between the two of them, then turned his frown on Tatsuki. She shrugged again.
"What's that, Hime-chan?" she asked. Orihime turned to her happily.
"Ishida-kun has been helping me with a quilting project. He's been finding the most beautiful fabric-" Tatsuki lost her attention in Orihime's story as something brushed behind her. She turned (Orihime didn't notice, she was too busy reenacting something, using Ichigo as a reluctant prop) and saw a flash of blue and white. Her teeth clenched; he followed her to school.
Without a goodbye to the others she took off at a run, heading in the direction Grimmjow had gone; slowing to a stop only when she reached the edge of the school grounds. He wasn't there, and she had no idea where he'd gone, or why she had even run after him in the first place. To kick his ass? Maybe, maybe if she even had a chance against him she would try it. He was stalking her.
She had been joking when she asked but he had said yes.
She didn't want to admit it, but it presented a certain level of excitement. Also it freaked her out. Why he would even want to stalk her, she had no idea. And she was running after her stalker. Tatsuki hung her head as she realized this, Ichigo would have some choice words to say to her if he ever found out.
With a deep breath she straightened her back and forced herself to relax. She hadn't seen Grimmjow; it was just a trick of the light (she had been staring at the sun. Smart move. Right there.). Satisfied that her mind was playing tricks on her because she expected him to be there, Tatsuki turned and began heading back to join her friends. She could almost make out Keigo trying to scale the fence to get away from Ichigo for something he'd done.
She would later make the excuse that she passed too close to the tree on her left and that she totally didn't scream or shriek or gasp. Okay, maybe she could admit that she gasped, but that was as shocked as she was when she was seized around the waist and slammed against said tree.
The back of her head cracked against the wood and she hissed in pain. Something warm and heavy and tall pressed between her legs and pushed her higher against the tree trunk, the thin material of her uniform catching the bark. She opened her eyes and was surrounded by blue.
"Gr-"
He snapped his teeth at her, grinning widely albeit manically and pressed his body harder into hers. Tatsuki swallowed at the contact.
"This is much more entertaining than following you around," he growled happily.
"Put me down."
"Fuck off; I'll do whatever the hell I want." Tatsuki's eyes narrowed.
"I'll tell Ichigo." Grimmjow leaned into her neck.
"No you won't. You have pride, don't you?" it killed her that he was right, she'd rather chew off her own hand then ask for Ichigo's help. It wasn't like he was doing anything she couldn't handle. He was just…sniffing her. Which was weird.
Just when she was about to shove him off, he stepped away from the tree, causing her to drop to the ground. She stared up at him silently. He flicked his tongue over the edge of his teeth, starting at her and used his sonido to disappear, leaving Tatsuki standing alone to realize…
He didn't have a reason to stalk her. He just wanted to.
.
Grimmjow paced back and forth across the desert arena that was Urahara's basement. It passed the time, at least. Ururu had come down hours ago to watch him, and then Jinta, who pulled her back up to the shop by her hair when Grimmjow became too boring. But they were barely a blip on his radar, and he was too focused on himself to give a damn anyways.
"Arisawa," he growled under his breath suddenly, stopping by a rock he'd passed twice already. With a sudden snarl he kicked out, obliterating the stone and sending shrapnel flying.
"Oi, Grimmjow!" He started at Ichigo voice, blinking as the orange hair man brushed dust and bits of rocks off his clothing. He was glaring at the blue haired Arrancar. "Watch where you're aiming."
Grimmjow rolled his eyes. A concerned frown replaced the glare on Ichigo's face, which only made Grimmjow's eyes narrow. This should be good.
"Why does Tatsuki keep asking about you?" asked Ichigo, leaning against a still standing bolder and leaving a good twenty feet between the two of them. Grimmjow tsk'd.
"Why the fuck should I know who that is?" he lied. Ichigo's eyebrows rose in disbelief.
"Don't think I haven't noticed that you've been following her," said Ichigo darkly. Grimmjow froze and inwardly swore. Ichigo looked away and glared at the ground. "Not that she'd ever tell me something was wrong-"
"She can take care of herself," snapped Grimmjow and like a firecracker, Ichigo flew away from the rock he was leaning against and tackled Grimmjow, catching him completely off guard because otherwise he'd never have been able to touch him. Ichigo snarled in Grimmjow's face.
"I swear to god if you touch her-"
"Get the fuck off me-"
"There won't be pieces of your body big enough to find-"
"I'll do whatever the fuck I want!"
"For even Orihime to be able to put back together."
They glared at each other for a long time, before Ichigo stood, breathing hard. Rage was vibrating through Grimmjow's nerves, but he merely sat up on the ground, propping his forearm on his raised knee. He sneered up at Ichigo.
"She can take care of herself, Kurosaki." Ichigo stiffened at his words, and for a brief, amusing moment Grimmjow thought he might attack him again. He decided to poke the strawberry. "And that's worth a few bruises from you."
"You haven't-"
Grimmjow interrupted with a satisfied groan, rising fluidly to his feet and stretching his arms over his head. He cocked his head at Ichigo, a bored and blank look on his face. "See ya, shinigami."
He left without another word; sonido'd out of the basement and Urahara's shop. Furious that he'd let the girl get to him. He was supposed to be the one playing, and all he accomplished was letting his instincts get the better of him.
She had chased him, it was her fault. He just…wanted to tease her a bit. He didn't mean to nuzzle her.
But he had and then he bolted, before he did something he'd regret. He wanted his play thing to last, at least until the shopkeeper found a way to get him home again without killing him. At the very least until he made a gigai that didn't melt trying to contain his spiritual pressure.
That hadn't been a fun afternoon.
Without paying attention, Grimmjow flew across town, occasionally knocking something down in his rage. He skidded to a stop in the middle of the street outside a familiar house. "Aw, fuck."
Tatsuki squinted against the sun as she leaned out the window of her room after feeling a familiar reiatsu getting closer. She groaned softly when she recognized Grimmjow. "Damn it."
He heard her, and just to piss her off (why should he be the only one with their panties in a twist? Misery loves company and all that shit) used his sonido to appear in front of her, standing on nothing and leering at her. He stuffed his hands into his pockets and leaned forward. She glared at him considering for a moment before she stepped to the side, giving him permission to enter.
He pretended not to be surprised as he entered her room and dropped onto her bed, arms crossing behind his head. She gave him a look and he ignored it, pawing at a gauzy yellow scarf tied to the bed post. Must have been a gift from Orihime, otherwise he couldn't see her keeping it out in the open where people could see it.
Tatsuki folded her arms over her chest and leaned against her desk, staring across the room at him. "Why are you here?"
He shrugged, pulling the scarf free of the bed. The material fell over his face and obscured his vision in yellow for a moment before he manages to untangle himself from it.
"Then why are you 'stalking' me?" Grimmjow snorted and sat up in her bed, bending a knee and resting his wrists against it as his fingers toyed with her scarf.
"I need a reason?"
Tatsuki's face reddened and she looked away. Grimmjow tossed the scarf in her direction, catching her attention as it fell softly to the floor at her feet.
"Not really stalking you anymore, am I?" asked Grimmjow, falling back against her mattress. He sighed. "This place is so boring, and humans are so breakable." Tatsuki stiffened. "Damn, chill out. I have no plans on breaking you yet."
"Yet," muttered Tatsuki. "But what are you going to do in the mean time?"
He sighed again. "Whatever. Playing with you was fun; you know it took you a month to realize I was following you? You didn't notice my reiatsu until the other day."
"Why?"
"Why the fuck not?" shouted Grimmjow, sitting up quickly and glaring at her. "I was bored and you were something to play with an eventually kill."
"What-!"
He waved her outrage off absently, turning his head away to look out the window. "Cool your jets, Arisawa, I decided not to kill you a while ago."
"Oh, I'm so glad you decided I was worthy of living," snarled Tatsuki sarcastically. The look he sent her clearly said it was no problem. "There isn't any other reason you picked me instead of…never mind," she finished quietly, looking away. "Just…could you go?"
"Go?" he asked innocently with a flash of teeth. He watched her spine straighten warily. "Why would I do that? You don't want me too."
"Yes, I do," insisted Tatsuki, pressing further back against her desk as if it would help her get away from him. He felt predatory excitement flare up in his blood.
"Nah," Grimmjow shook his head, standing from the bed and cornering her at her desk in one fluid movement. He placed his hands on the desk behind her at either side of her body, leaning into her personal space until they were pressed against each other. He heard her breath hitch. "You really don't."
"You...You have dirt in your hair."
He blinked at her stupidly, but she was looking at his hair. She reached up without warning and brushed her fingers through it, sending a flurry of gravel into the air between them.
"Why do you have dirt in your hair?"
"Hey, stop talking," snapped Grimmjow, reaching up to grab her hand. "I can think of like 15 different things you could be doing with your mouth right now and talking isn't on the list."
Tatsuki snorted in disgust and leaned her head back. "That's nauseating."
"That's the truth." He tightened his grip on her hand when she tried to pull it back. "Did you sic Ichigo on me?"
Her eyebrows shot down in confusion. "No."
He grunted in approval or acknowledgement or whatever the satisfied feeling in his chest meant. In his head he rectified his actions for wanting to keep her quiet or to gain some control over the situation; when she opened her mouth to speak (probably to ask him what Ichigo did) he interrupted her by moving his mouth over hers. She squeaked at the contact, something he noted to remember and use over her later. Just when he was about to break away and leave without a word in a blur of smirks and blue he felt her tongue brush against his.
And his insticnts took over him once again. He dropped her hand and pressed it against the back of her skull, keeping her head still to gain even more leverage over her, his other hand running up her back and under her shirt. Grimmjow felt her fingers on his hips; tugging on the material of his clothes; pulling his hips flush against hers.
He came back to himself long enough to pull away and back off. His skin humming and his lips bruised and raw and he knew he was going to regret going, but if he stayed she would hate him and for some reason he didn't want that.
"See ya, Arisawa."
"Grimm-" He sonido'd away before she could finish his name.