HIM

"Woman."

Orihime, referred to as 'woman', looked up from her couch. She had been crying recently, her red eyes told you that, but what her eyes told the person who walked in the room weren't pleasant things.

"I have brought your food."

"I don't want it."

"Eat your food."

"No!" She had begun to cry again, but her face remained firm. The man walked up to her and stared directly in her eyes.

"Eat your food or I will strap you down and force you to eat it. If that does not work I can feed you by IV. "

The man watched as, wide-eyed, she began to eat. When she was finished he left her once again to her thoughts.
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Days passed, everyday he would bring her food, make sure she ate it then leave. After a few weeks of solitude she began to anticipate his visits. Although he was all she had, he never spoke to her. She was determined to have at least one conversation with the stone-like man.

"Um," She watched as the man turned to face her, "What's your name?"

"Ulquiorra Schiffer." He turned to the door and left her. Even though he was cold and unsociable, it was still progress.

"Ulquiorra, why am I kept here? It's like a prison cell." She tried to get some sort of answer out of him. She'd been trying for awhile to get him to talk; it was only a matter of time.

"It is a cell. Aizen-sama wanted to be sure you wouldn't be harmed in Los Nochas, or that you'd run away."

"My friends will come for me."

"Your friends will die. Can't you feel their reitsus dying one by one?"

She couldn't stand the thought of her friends dying for her. For a single moment she allowed anger to direct her actions, leading her to slap Ulquiorra. He seemed to be in shock. He could have easily dodged her slap then could have killed her, but he didn't. He turned to face her and was slightly surprised to see her crying again.

"They will NOT die!"
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"Your friends are going to die."

"Stop saying that!" Orihime screamed, "Don't you have a heart?!" He turned and gave her a slight look of confusion, a rare show of emotion.

"What is a heart? Would I see it if I cracked open your chest?" He put his fingers over her heart, and then he moved them to her forehead," would I see your soul if I split open your skull?" He started to say something else, but a violent blast took out a wall and another man walked through.

"Ichigo!"
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"Woman, are you afraid?" Ulquiorra asked. He stood there in his second resurrection, a giant black-winged demon. He reached his hand out to her.

"No." She began to cry as she reached for his hand, but as she touched it, it turned to dust. As his body began to disappear he gave her a small smile.

"I understand now, what a 'heart' is."

When Ulquiorra completely disappeared Ichigo walked over to orihime and led her away. When they re-joined the rest of the gang, she refused to look at any of them. When they had finally all returned home, Orihime told them her whole experience from the beginning. She ended her tale in tears. She was grateful for the rescue, but she wished he hadn't died. She wished he didn't have to disappear. She missed him, even now.

"He will come back," Rukia said, "He turned to dust, right? That means he's rebuilding his body to come back. You'll see him again."

Orihime smiled, she would wait forever as long as she could see him one more time.