I am not afraid

Ulquiorra turned his head, and his yellow eyes bore into his.

„And just when I finally was becoming… a little bit intrigued by the way you people behave."

He was the enemy. Orihime probably wasn't supposed to feel the way she did. Yet… Somehow, this one sentence, the crackling sound and the view of the Espada gradually turning into dust, broke her heart.

For a moment, her mind flashed back to all the moments she had talked with Ulquiorra. She still had clearly in front of her eyes how he had asked her about the heart.

„If I tear open that chest of yours, will I see it there? If I smash open that skull of yours, will I see it there?"

Beneath the threatening sound of those words had lain the sincere, almost desperate wish to understand.

The entire time she had been a prisoner in Hueco Mundo, Ulquiorra had tried to discourage her, to make her give up. At first, Orihime had been afraid. And she still was, in a sense. After all, the Quarta Espada was an immesurably strong, dangerous being. However… Despite his continuous intimidations, despite of his mocking of the concept of heart, Orihime had sensed something else too. Something beneath that calm, connected exterior. It was visible in his eyes – like right now.

A profound emptiness, craving to be filled.

Sadness filled Orihime as she watched the Espada dissolve more and more. She had come to realise very soon that the questions about the heart had stemmed from that craving. He who had no emotions wanted to understand emotions…

„So let me ask you again, girl… are you afraid of me?"

Ulquiorra's voice ripped her out of her thoughts. The Espada lifted an arm, reached for her.

Orihime met his gaze, and she answered truthfully, while lifting her own arm, reaching for his hand.

„No, I am not afraid. I'm really not."

And this time, it was true, as strange as it may seem. The Fourth Espada had kidnapped her, killed two Shinigamis, almost killed her friends. Yet, during her captivity, he had never harmed her. On her part, for some weird reason, she had soon stopped being afraid of him. In fact, she had felt comforted by the fact that he would keep any harm away from her.

How paradox.

Something like relief flashed up in Ulquiorra's eyes. „I understand."

As he said that, Orihime's hand almost touched his. But instead of getting a hold of it, she caught air – and a bit of dust into which his body dissolved.

A tear slid down her cheek.

Sure. Ulquiorra had been an enemy. He had abducted her. He had almost killed Ichigo several times. And yet she mourned his passing, wishing her powers had been strong enough to save him.

Because of all their enemies, Ulquiorra had been the only one who, in the end, had regained his heart.