We disguise ourselves in fake claims and wrong reasoning because we are afraid of who we are. Will the people around us leave when the mask is removed?

Chapter Three: Lasting Trust Uncovered

They were supposed to be enemies. He was the bad guy, the fierce reality of what power could do to a soul. He was the definition of how easily power could tarnish a soul and allow vanquish of the softer side to people. She was the hero, the fatal truth of what it meant to protect, no matter what personal costs had to be made. She showed how power should be used until the end, no matter what. She understood this difference between them, and so did he, from the start. By this point, after what seemed like a very long time to her, but a short while to him, they were getting too close to crossing the lines.

As she began to have her sleeping area closer to him, she told herself she was merely testing his resistance and seeing just how far across the line you had to be before things turned around. Time had been irrelevant to her, and the same pattern was casual for this unknown time now. Every day they did the same things as they had from the start. Silence and edging slowly towards each other was routine. He didn't pursue in the closeness, but she wanted to test the trust between them before she even thought of risking her true identity. So far, his reaction was as though nothing was happening, though he had noticed the cats growing curiosity and hope of something coming from it. Once again, he watched another weak point of her take stride.

They both did have questions tugging on their minds every time their eyes connected. The same silence enveloped them in mystery, leaving these questions swallowed up in its peaceful bliss. The burning yellow eyes of the cat couldn't penetrate the regretful cyan eyes. They were getting nowhere anymore, so the edging was the only way she could feel a stronger connection. They had learned all they could in the silence and now they were simply waiting to see who the weaker one was, and who was desperate enough to break it. She hoped he would break under her staring, but his ignorance was structured to where she couldn't penetrate it. He didn't try anything, and went on with his regular schedule. He could tell from the first time she spoke, she would eventually break. She was the opposite of him, he was the quiet type.

He had suspected right. She was growing weary of being locked up in silence. Her defenses were wearing thin, and she was aware of it. She wanted to finally believe in him and reveal herself. The limitless time she was spending here doing nothing made her restless, but his indecisive eyes made her hold on. He was intelligent, and patient; he was catching on to all of her weaknesses. She was patient under certain circumstances, but not now, not when she was needed elsewhere and her time was being ruined. The time here with him was getting too comfortable with her; she hated being so close to the enemy, and almost enjoying it.

When he left the room at an unusual time, she decided that day was the perfect day to make everything different. She figured today was her day to take out this Espada. Today, she would kill him. She also had an escape plan, of course. If she managed to take him down, she would simply transform back. A cat would go more easily unnoticed than a human, and she could sneak her way right out the doors. Once outside, she figured she could wait around for some time to get out of Hueco Mundo; someone had to of noticed her absence by now. There was no way Kisuke couldn't have noticed.

With this idea clear in mind, she transformed back to her human form. The black fur turned to long deep violet hair lacing around her shoulders and down her back, the yellow eyes turned to a humanized gold and her body stretched out into a lean figure. She adjusted quickly to the different form, and found herself grabbing one of his suits out of the closet. She slipped it on, but had quick distaste for the rather loose fit it gave compared to her usual tight fashion; not to mention, white had become an unfavorable color after being trapped in a dimension of whiteness for so long. She sighed, and unruffled it, brushing it down and trying to make the best of her sources.

The remainder of her time alone she sat in her usual spot with her legs folded in front of her, and her body leaning lightly against the wall, her eyes focused on the door. Would he jump her and attack? He seemed to have the same opinion on fighting as her; to let it go unless attacking was necessary. She thought about her earlier plan, and wondered if fighting him was truly necessary to help with the problems the Arrancar were creating. Was it against his own will to be an enemy? Of course, he still had to of had the feral attitude of a hollow in him, but she thought beyond the typical, and wondered if there was still a piece of him that wasn't wild. After all, he spared her for so long, and never expected anything from her. That showed enough proof to her that he was different, and maybe he didn't have all the evil of a hollow as she would have first imagined him to have.

As she waited for him, her mind kept flipping from her accusations of him being different to her thoughts that it was all a trick. He could be doing it just to lure her out of her cover and make a fool out of her. She would be a fool if that was the case, but she didn't sense that in him. She was good with reading people, and with him she could feel the pain and regret he held, as though he had so much to feel sorry about. How many times had he wished he hadn't done something? Sometimes she thought he felt bad for taking her there; he would look at her with apologetic eyes, though they were veiled with scornful distaste towards her. This veil wasn't true though, she could feel how false this distaste was. During the days she got closer to him, he was welcoming her, she could feel that much in his presence. He never leaned in the other direction, and sometimes she wondered if he was longing for her trust.

She wanted his trust more than anything. Not because it was necessarily smart to have the enemy on your side, but because the long time spent with him had given her an unexpected attraction towards him. The hatred she once had towards him for being who he was vanished; she looked at him to be a person now, rather than an Arrancar. He always hid the hole in the base of his neck, which only helped to show normality, and pushed her further into wondering if he had a side that wanted to be rid of his evil half. Could evil turn good as easily as good could turn evil?

I'm over thinking things again. He's the enemy; I shouldn't be this involved with him. What am I thinking? She allowed her eyes to drift from the door for a few moments as she closed her eyes and inhaled the stale air. There might not have been such a thing as crisp fresh air here, as much as she could remember being outside this building the air still wasn't as clean as in the World of the Living, or the Soul Society for that matter. Everything here was desolate. Like a land abandoned; anyone living here should be left behind and forgotten. They were all on the wrong side, and here she was caught in the middle of it, nearly wanting to join forces with one of them; not to join his side, but to join him and find a friend in him. Maybe more, because the odd feeling she had for him went beyond a normal friendship, she longed for him the whole day while she awaited his return. Maybe it was her curiosity wanting him to come back, but another piece of her wished for him to return for a different reason, for the sole fact that she enjoyed his company.

Her eyes opened again after she cleared her mind of her absurd thoughts of friendship and a light feeling of love towards this Arrancar. Her eyes were rested on the door again. Today it felt like he was away for longer than usual, but she accepted that she was anxious, which only slowed time further. She needed something to do, if he chose to attack her, or not, at least this would provide something new. She decided whatever decision he made, she would find a way to deal with it. Obviously if he accept her, she would only hope for their trust to deepen, and at some point, just maybe he would let her in. If he chose to attack, she would have to go with her original plan. She knew for sure now that she wasn't going to make the first move towards attacking anymore; she hated to fight unnecessarily.

He had grown rather close to her as well, and it puzzled him as to why she affected him like this. As of right now, he was nearly positive the cat had to be Yoruichi, but he still wasn't for certain. He walked slowly down the hall back to his room, knowing the familiar eyes of the cat would rest on him when he walked in the door. Why did it stare at him so passionately? He couldn't understand how anything coming from the world of the living that knew about his potential would ever look at him as anything but evil. It was his reputation along with the others, and he had to live with it. He admired the cat for keeping with him and not trying to fight back in any way. If it truly was Yoruichi, he did wonder if she was just waiting for the perfect opportunity to make a move. He had heard numerous things about her, and all of them indicated she was intelligent. If it was the case that it was her, he could only wait for a day he returned to his room and got a surprise attack. In this instant when he stood outside his door, he could feel a different presence behind it before even touching the handle. He extended his hand out and warily took hold of the handle, and with little hesitation, pulled open the door. Everything would be changed in one direction from this simple movement.

When the mask is removed, our relationships may flip and break, or rotate and form.

His first notion was to stare at her in an out of character appreciation for her courage, but instead he tried to put on the usual mask of being unaffected. He was right, he noticed the instant he saw the normal position of the cat overtaken by the woman he had been suspecting could be waiting for him someday. He didn't brace himself for an attack, because he noticed her tense up and wait for his reaction, which indicated it was safe for him to continue without needing to act like he was on a defensive with her. Tension built in the room between both of them, each one wondering what was on the other's mind; and if the trust they had built over time would shatter due to the truth being uncovered.

She stood up from her resting position as he walked in closer to her, the door closed behind him signaled she was trapped from running away anytime soon. She didn't want to run anyway, she wanted to believe there was nothing to worry about when she was with him. Her instincts had been right, he was different.

"I will admit, you are intelligent," she pointed out, noting the earlier suspicions he had towards her identity. He froze to the sound of her voice, now much more elegant, but still holding the same power and certainty. "But what is it that sets you apart from the rest?"

He looked at her up and down, wondering where this sudden jump in bravery came from, when she had been nervous around him most of the time before when she was a simple feline. Now that she was human, she seemed more confident of herself than before; and this was the only time he would have thought of attacking her, now that she could pose a threat. He had not intentions of hurting her still, unless she pulled something that would threaten him, or Las Noches.

"I don't believe in fighting unless it benefits Lord Aizen, or myself," he said quietly, wondering when he would be saying too much.

"I see. I suppose we have similar beliefs then," she smiled. They were both at a resting point now, standing a few feet apart from each other – a safe distance to both of them. Parts of their understandings for each other were erased at this moment, because now Ulquiorra had a human form to work with, and a human's emotions were displayed so much differently than that of the cats. She was easier to read in some ways, but at the same time, he didn't know how well she could cover emotions up and pretend.

"I am impressed that I actually got you to look me over with some expression," she laughed lightly, "Maybe there is something in that emotionless soul of yours."

He refrained from starting a conversation about his interests ,and waited for her to retreat back to her corner spot. Instead, they stood there staring at each other for a long, silent moment that should have been awkward, but neither of them noticed the intensity; they only noticed each other.

"The big secret is out now… so what's next?" She asked him impatiently, hoping he would do something aside from hiding her here even longer.

"Nothing. You'll stay here still."

"Ugh. Are you so stubborn to keep me here just for the sake of getting on my nerves?"

"Does it really bother you?"

"Should I be bothered?"

His eyes softened and he was the one to retreat to his usual sitting spot. Of course, sitting made him vulnerable, but he watched in satisfactory as she followed suit and they resumed normal positioning in the room.

"You can't keep me here forever, what happens when one of your allies finds me?"

"I won't let them."

Her eyes narrowed on him as she tried to study the reality of his words. Were they words of passion, or were they words of possession? Was he treating her as someone he cared for, or as an object he claimed? She bent her legs up, folded her arms over them, and sighed. He was hopeless; she would never be able to have a normal relationship with him, though, that was expected from the start. What was unexpected was the feeling of security she had with him. That had to have meant his words were for protecting her as someone he cared for, not as a possession.

Instead of looking away from her eyes, he too studied her. She was different to him, and there was a point in him adjusting to the new presence, but she was looking at him as though seeing him through different eyes.

Their staring was interrupted by the creak in the door that shattered their concentration and caused them both to jump to their feet. Ulquiorra was to the door in a second, but his intruder already had the door wide open.

Should we protect an enemy we love, and betray what we stand for?

Ok, I couldn't help but to jump into this, because… the other part of it was getting difficult to write since there is only so much silence in a plain white room can offer towards my creativity. I hope this wasn't too rushed, but if it was please let me know and I will slow things down again so I don't further the rushing. I believe now that they are more comfortable with each other, conversations and whatnot will happen often, as opposed to them not knowing whether they should talk. Anyway, that chapter was a little lengthier… mostly because I was excited to work with something a little different. Once again, comments & critiques are appreciated. Thanks to those reading, and to those reviewing ^.^