A/N: Hi everyone. I know this is a crossover, but it's my first Ulquihime chapter fic. I was intentionally planning on making this a oneshot, but my mind said no; thus, this plot bunny was born. Also, like the genre says, this will be quite angsty. I haven't written much angsty fanfiction yet, but what I have has gotten good reviews, albeit not that many. I hope this does justice to the pairing, but it has an interesting twist making it different from most, if not all, of the other Ulquihime fanfics out there. Most of the main characters in this will be from Bleach. I'll put some FMA characters in, but they'll probably be minor characters aside from the Homunculi. Also, I'm explaining the backstory as the story progresses, so I won't go on a long rant explaining everything that happened at once, though the basics are explained in this chapter. There will probably be some flashbacks, though. You don't have to be too familiar with Bleach or FMA to understand the story, but to fully get the message, it's best if you at least understand the basics of the Ulquihime pairing. Anyway, enjoy! :)
Disclaimer: I own neither Bleach nor FMA, but I own the plot for this story. I'm proud of my idea, so that satisfies me. I hope this story satisfies all of you, too. I also own all the quotes at the beginning of each chapter.
To cross the border, you must take risks. Yet how far should you go if you know you can never turn back? Gather the ashes of your past, and make a choice whether to hold them to your heart and never allow the world to make the same mistakes again, or become the settled dust of humanity's errors and burn yourself along with them. Growth or ashes? Choose carefully.
~.+.~
Orihime Inoue tightly grips the chalk, struggling to keep her hand from trembling. Her autumn colored hair is plastered to her back with sweat, and pearly tears are beading in her silvery eyes. She draws the circle carefully, wondering if she is making the right decision. She glances at the forlorn pile of ashes resting on a quilt by her bed. Would Ulquiorra have wanted this? He told me it was forbidden...
~.+.~
Ulquiorra Cifer, her captor. Her teacher. Her surprising, unexpected, forbidden love. She can never forget his captivating emerald eyes she used to drown in, or his jet black hair that she wished she could run her fingers through. Most of all, she'd never forget how he'd treated her. She was a hostage, a voluntary hostage, yet he never mistreated or abused her. Her cell, though lonely, was clean and comfortable. She was safe.
Yet she was unsatisfied.
He told her that emotions had no place in science, quite different than what her Shinigami friends had always told her, that the soul was the most important thing in existence. She'd always argue with him, explaining all she knew about souls and the heart and such. He claimed to disagree about their importance, yet he seemed intrigued. He'd ask her about it, and she'd always answer. Anything to get him to understand.
Once he seemed to trust her, he began to teach her alchemy. She was suspicious at first since the Shinigami were at war with the alchemists, yet boredom and curiosity got the better of her. She learned well. The only forbidden topic: human transmutation. She asked him why. He said, "There are many speculations about it, many foolish alchemists wondering why it never works. The reason is simple; souls do not exist, and there is nothing that can be changed about what is not real."
Eventually came the rescue day, the day Ichigo Kurosaki, her friend she once was in desperate love with, the one she prayed would rescue her, plunged Zangetsu, his Zanpakuto sword, through Ulquiorra. As the Green Lightning Alchemist crumbled into ashes, he reached out to her and said, "Now I see. Your heart was right... in my hands."
~.+.~
There. The circle is complete. If souls are real, which Orihime believes with all her heart, then this has to work. She brushes her tears away and sprinkles the ashes into the center along with all the necessary additional chemicals. She can't help but smile as she lays her hands against the circle's border, beginning the transmutation. Soon, Ulquiorra would be standing right in front of her, alive and astonished that in addition to souls being real, Orihime had succeeded in bringing his back into existence to a word in which Shinigami and alchemists could live in peace. Soon, he'd see how diligent she'd been in her alchemical studies after his death; she'd learned a lot more from Edward Elric. Soon, they'd be together again with no obstacles to hinder their love and happiness.
She has no idea how wrong she is.
A/N: What do you think so far? Is it any good? Please review because I'm in need of constructive criticism! :)