Men of Ashes
She couldn't believe it had happened. How, how had this spiraled out of her control? How was his black wings no longer highlighted by the moon? He, he couldn't be gone. That couldn't be all that was left of him, scattered over there, on the ground. How could this have happened? How could she have let him die? She was called over to Ishida by a voice she distantly recognized as Ichigo. She went through the process of healing him in a daze. Nothing really seemed to matter.
"Orihime, I have to go help riko, will you be okay here?" Ichigo asked. His voice seemed tainted by his happiness over his victory, and Orihime hated it.
"I'll be fine, Ishida's here." she replied in a dead voice. Ishida gave her a questioning look but she turned away from him. A moment later she heard Ichigo leave, she didn't turn to look. With hesitant steps she approached the spot where he had last stood, there was nothing left. She couldn't even find any of his ashes.
"Nothing to bury, nothing to remember you by, you meant what you said." Orihime mumbled to herself.
"Hey Ulquiorra, what would happen if one of you died?" Orihime asked looking into those beautiful, emerald, green eyes.
"What a strange question, woman" Ulquiorra replied, obviously not expecting this question.
"Please, Ulquiorra?" Orihime pouted.
"We become ashes, woman, and with a little time our ashes blow away. Nothing to find, nothing to bury, and nothing to REMEMBER." Ulquiorra replied, giving in to her pouting.
"But that's so sad!" Orihime exclaimed.
"Sad? What is this SAD, woman?" Ulquiorra asked.
At long last, she tried to cry. She tried to cry for the soul that she had never thought of as evil. She couldn't cry. It wasn't because she really did hate Ulquiorra, no, it was because for some reason no tears came. All she really knew was that she blamed herself.
"I, I can't believe your not here. I can't believe your not going to come out saying "strange woman" at any moment." Orihime mourned quietly.
"Ah, Orihime? Who are you talking to?" Ishida asked, quite honestly confused.
"Oh just a friend who left without saying Good bye." Orihime said her voice covered in self hate. This confused him but he slowly started putting it together.
"You liked that Espada, didn't you?" Ishida exclaimed disbelief coloring his tone. Orihime nodded to the affirmative.
"How? He was your captor the one who kept you here! He tried to kill me and Ichigo! He would have killed you if he'd had the chance!" Ishida violently exclaimed. Orihime sadly shock her head and replied,
"I don't think he would have. You forget he saved both of us from Ichigo who was our "friend"." Orihime murmured with deep despair.
"Do you really think that?" Ishida exclaimed not wanting to listen to the part of his brain that screamed she was right.
"Yes" Orihime said in a decided voice. A day later the war ended in Aizen's death, there was only one surviving espada.
