Hope you all had a good Halloween! Ulquiorra didn't get any candy; instead, he got two Espadas for companions and his first legitimate smile. Anyways, on with the show!

The Search for a Heart chapter 4 – Oogie's surprise

We had been walking for quite a ways. Not because we weren't in a hurry, but because Starrk had ended his Resurrección, letting Lillynette become a little girl once more. She insisted on stopping and looking at every little thing, from jack o lanterns that moved to talking to the occasional ghost. Nothing would deter her. Grimmjow's threats were ignored, as were Starrk's reprimands. Even my imposing form, seeing as I appeared as if I was using Resurrección Segunda Etapa, had no effect on her.

Turning towards Starrk while she was marveling at a curious hill that seemed to spiral in on itself, Grimmjow asked, "Why the hell did you end your Resurrección state? We could have gotten to this Oogie Boogie guy a long time ago!"

"If this Oogie Boogie has the Hogyoku," Starrk replied, as calm as I ever was, "then we'll all need to be at full strength if we want any chance at beating him."

That caused silence to fall on us once more. Even Lillynette followed step, walking with us quietly.

I wasn't surprised when Grimmjow broke the silence. "That's something I don't get. If this guy has the Hogyoku, then why are we still here?"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, those people seemed to follow Oogie Boogie like Kaname Tosen followed Aizen," Grimmjow replied. "It doesn't take a genius to guess that someone reported us to Oogie Boogie."

"I see what you mean," Starrk replied. "If this Oogie Boogie person was paranoid enough to warp a whole town to worship him like a god, then we should be scattered into spirit particles by now."

Even I didn't have an answer for that.


We eventually came to what we were looking for. It was a castle constructed of wood and bone. Purple roofing jabbed into the sky like a sword. What was most disturbing was that the front gate was open.

"It looks like you were partially right, Grimmjow," I said. "Someone did tell Oogie Boogie about us."

We walked in, our weapons at the ready. There was no lighting except for one at the end. It illuminated a single door, with the initials O.B. painted in green on it. By unspoken consent, we all barged into through the door.

Whoever constructed this room was crazier than the Octavo Espada. A ridiculously big and extravagant throne was in the back of the room. In front of us, a host of skeletons that looked rather cubic were playing various casino games. Skeletons in red ties dealt playing cards at a speed that almost made it look like they were using Sonido. The sound of dice rolling across floors filled the room like a waterfall. Some skeletons were even playing Russian Roulette, using a mixture of guns and knives.

On the throne sat the strange sack creature I saw on my first day with the Caretaker. This time, though, he was wearing a crown decorated with emeralds and rubies. A purple cape was barely visible, seeing as he was sitting on most of it. He regarded us through eyes that would be better described as empty holes. Literally – he had no eyes.

With a clap of his tentacle hands, all activity in the room ceased. Getting up, he said, "Who are these losers? Don't they know they have to get permission from the O-man to be in my presence?"

"Are you Oogie Boogie?" I asked, ready to summon my Keyblade.

"I am," the giant sack replied. "And who are you supposed to be? A goth boy with a fetish for bats?"

Before I could lose my composure, Starrk stepped up. "We're not here to fight you, pal. We're here for the Hogyoku. Hand it over and no one gets hurt."

"The weird glass box?" Oogie Boogie replied. "Sorry boys, but I can't hand it over. Unless, you're willing to play a game."

"What game?" Grimmjow asked, his suspicion evident in his tone.

"A fight!" Oogie Boogie replied. At this, all the skeletons ran out of the room. They were all trampling over each other in order to get out quickly. These skeletons looked… scared. Oogie Boogie continued, "Before I… uh… put away my magic box, it gave me a little surprise. The best fighter I've ever seen! Beat him, and the box is all yours."

Oogie Boogie snapped his fingers. Any other day, that would have had me asking how that was possible. Right now, though, we have bigger problems as a giant figure dropped from the ceiling. As he stood up, we all got a shock.

"Yammy?" We all asked at once.

It truly was the Diez Espada. He seemed… different, though. His eyes were now black with red dots. Black smoke rose off of him like steam. In place of his Hollow hole, he had the symbol of the Heartless.

"Dammit – he's a Heartless!" I swore, bringing my Keyblade to bear. At the same time, we all used our Resurrección, filling the room with our power. I still looked like I was in my final state, but my power was only at level as if I had released my first state. Oogie Boogie felt the jump in power, because he fell over and had a hard time getting up.

Yammy, on the other hand, looked like he didn't feel a damn thing. He looked at me with his new eyes. "Ulquiorra…" he hissed, his voice not human or Hollow.

"I'll have your hearts!" Yammy yelled, lunging for us. We all threw ourselves in different directions, crashing into card tables and sending cards flying. Grimmjow was the first to recover – he appeared in front of Yammy and slashed three times at his chest, then delivered a kick that sent him flying. Grimmjow turned to us, a smirk on his face.

Yammy appeared behind him, grabbing him and lifting him up into the air. Charging a bala in his hands, Yammy threw Grimmjow into the air while firing the bala at the same time. Grimmjow would be badly injured from that, so it was down to me and Starrk.

We rushed Yammy together. I used my wings to fly above him, freeing Starrk to fire a series of ceros at our Heartless opponent. It definitely hurt Yammy – he started howling in pain and proceeded to charge a cero in his mouth. I used my Keyblade to disrupt it, jamming it into his mouth while firing my own cero at point blank range. Yammy fell over, stunned but not defeated. Gesturing to Starrk, we both used Sonido to appear where Grimmjow had landed. He was just getting back up.

"We need to take care of Yammy now," Starrk stated. "If he's this tough now, I don't want to think about what will happen if he uses his Resurrección."

"I think I have an idea," I said, "but it'll be quite risky."

"Let's do it," Grimmjow groaned. "We're dead anyway, right?"

He had a point. I explained my plan to them, both of them wide eyed. Something like this had never been attempted before by any Espada in known history. Despite that, they took their positions.

The moment Yammy got up, I launched myself at him. I started hammering him with both the Keyblade and my first state release version of my Lanza Del Relampago attack. I couldn't see Grimmjow or Starrk, but I heard them start their attacks. I heard the slight spurt of blood, followed by Grimmjow shouting, "Gran Rey Cero!" At the same time, I heard Starrk twirling his guns and shouting, "Cero Metralleta Oscuras!"

I had milliseconds before their attacks reached me. I shouted, "Aerozaga!" This is what made Starrk and Grimmjow wide-eyed; no Espada in history had ever attempted to use magic. Just to make sure, I focused all my spiritual energy into my hierro, making it the hardest it ever was.

Yammy never stood a chance. He didn't even have time to scream as the two powerful attacks tore him apart. Blue and black-green ceros raged around me as they hammered against my defenses. It ended up being too much, and I blacked out.


When I awoke, it was to find Lillynette bouncing on my chest. My Keyblade was gone, presumably having gone back to wherever it came from until I needed it. Starrk was looking over the throne, while Grimmjow had his sword against Oogie Boogie's throat. Getting up, I walked over to Grimmjow.

"What happened?" I asked, my tone friendly for once.

"After you blacked out, Starrk and I stopped Oogie Boogie from fleeing. He refused to talk, so I volunteered to watch Oogie Boogie while Starrk searched the room for the Hogyoku."

"I think I can make him talk," I said. Time to channel the old me.

Grimmjow lifted his sword as I bent down to Oogie Boogie. "From the moment I saw you," I began, "I wondered how a being like you can exist. I think I finally figured it out."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Oogie Boogie huffed. Even a dimwit like Wonderweiss could tell that he was lying.

"You're stitched up," I commented, my voice once again becoming monotone. "A being with the power of the Hogyoku wouldn't need stitches – he could make it as though the wounds never existed. Therefore, I think these stitches are what's keeping you together. You're nothing but a glorified rag doll."

I grabbed one of the stitches on his arm, making sure he could see what I was doing. "Here's what going to happen," I said. "I'm going to pull out your stitching, and continue to do so until you tell us where the Hogyoku is."

"You're lying," Oogie Boogie said in a shaky voice. "You wouldn't do that. You're a Keyblade Wielder. You're all softies."

With a yank, I pulled out the stitching on his arm. It unraveled like one of those party favors the humans use, revealing a mass of mugs where the muscles and skeleton would be. They started crawling away, with Grimmjow and Lillynette comically stomping on them like their lives depended on it.

"Do you think I'm kidding now?" I asked. My hand moved towards the other arm. "I wonder how you're going to play Liar's Dice with no arms?"

"Alright, alright!" Oogie Boogie screamed, absolutely terrified. "I don't have that Hog-thingie! It's gone!"

"What do you mean, 'gone'?" Stark asked, walking over to us.

"It flew off!" Oogie Boogie said, rambling as he went on. "It flew off just I was about to make some mantis smoothies appear! It said I didn't deserve it, that I was weak! Can you imagine? Me, weak? It created that Yammy thing saying it needed to cover its tracks! Or at least give it time to find a new master! That's all I know, I swear!"

"So, this 'Hogyoku' has the power to grant its master anything they desire?" a new voice asked. This man sounded like he was the long lost brother of Aizen – mysterious, a powerful leader, and a masterful manipulator. "It seems we are in luck."

Turning around, we saw the speaker. It was a man in a black cloak, covering his body completely. Chains and zippers covered the outfit, but instead of coming off as hastily put together, it seemed well made. Black gloves covered his hands. The hood was pulled back, allowing us to see his face. His hair was a dusty silver, ending just below the shoulders. Orange eyes regarded us with little to no emotion, as if he was an actor trying to remember how to be human. This man looked like he would have been very comfortable as a politician.

"For helping us, Organization XIII, to achieve our goals, you have the thanks of Xemnas," the figure replied, bowing low. "We will have hearts once more."

"What do you mean?" Starrk asked. "Are you all Hollows?"

The man closed his eyes and started chuckling softly, like his children had done something adorable. "We are hollow, in a sense," he replied. "However, we differ from those like you in that we are not souls. We are what's left when our original selves become Heartless. We are… Nobodies."

A portal appeared behind him. It was similar to the ones that brought us to this world, but instead of being all white, this portal was black with a purple center. "Enjoy your existence, while you can," Xemnas said in that soft-spoken yet commanding voice. "Once we have hearts, we shall rain misery down on those who take theirs for granted."

The moment he was gone, Grimmjow and Lillynette spoke up at the same time. "I don't like him."

"That guy is definitely hiding something," Starrk said. "What could it be?"

"We'll worry about it later," I replied. Everyone turned towards me in confusion. I elaborated, saying, "Have you forgotten why we were sent here in the first place? Our job is to fix this world. If we go after that 'Xemnas' character, how will we be any better than him? Or Aizen?"

Starrk started smiling. Walking up to me, he clapped me on the shoulder. "It's good to know that some things never change," he said. "You still remember what comes first, Ulquiorra."

"How are we going to fix this place, though?" Grimmjow asked. "The Hogyoku's gone, and Oogie Boogie ran off while that Xemnas guy was ranting. I'd say we have a snake's eye gamble at this point."

Grimmjow was right on two fronts. Oogie Boogie had indeed run off, presumably to some safe house he had constructed. Truly, though, how would we fix this world? Fixing the damage caused by a wish-granting object is no easy task.

Today seems to be "Surprise Ulquiorra" day. My Keyblade appeared in my hands, pointing at a spot on the floor. As a circle of light appeared around the tip, an emblem of light in the shape of a keyhole started to form on the ground. In a flash, I was in an unknown space, surrounded by clouds painted in sunset colors.

The keyhole was above me by several meters. From the keyhole, a masculine voice asked, "Who are you, Wielder of the Keyblade?"

"My name is Ulquiorra Schiffer," I replied. For some reason, I felt the need to bow before this keyhole and whatever it contained. Getting down on one knee, I continued, "I have been sent here by the being known as the Caretaker. This world has been altered, manipulated to serve a madman's needs and wants by way of an object called the Hogyoku. My companions and I have been charged with repairing the damage caused by this wish-granting object."

"The Caretaker?" The voice mused. "So, she is active after all this time… very well, Ulquiorra Schiffer. I believe your story. There is a way to repair the damage caused by this 'Hogyoku'. Listen to me very carefully…"


Grimmjow and Starrk were wrecking apart the spot where Ulquiorra had vanished, hoping to find some evidence or trace of where he had gone. Lillynette tried distracting herself by building a pyramid of cards, but it was obvious she was fighting back tears.

In the same manner that Ulquiorra disappeared, he reappeared. The Keyblade was in hands for a moment more, before it vanished in a flash of light. Running towards him, everyone started asking questions.

"Where the hell…"

"What happened…"

"Did you…"

"Enough," Ulquiorra stated, his volume causing them all to be silent. Returning to his normal voice, he said, "Please, not all at once. Even I'm not completely sure what happened."

"What are you sure of, though?" Grimmjow asked.

"This world is back to normal," Ulquiorra replied.

"How can you be sure?" Starrk asked.

Before Ulquiorra could reply, the door they first came in burst open. Out ran Jack Skellington and a few other citizens of Halloween Town. "Alright, Oogie, it's time to pay for…" Jack stopped short when he saw Ulquiorra and the others standing there.

"What happened?" asked a feminine voice behind Jack. It was a rag doll that came up to Jack's chin, wearing a simple but elegant dress that was made up of patches of cloth.

"It looks like Ulquiorra and his friends happened," Jack replied. Addressing them directly, he asked, "What did you do?"

"We stopped Oogie Boogie and fixed the Town," Ulquiorra replied. "All with the help of my friends here and this," he added, making his Keyblade appear.

Jack studied it, as if he had seen it before. "That looks so familiar," he muttered. Shaking his head, he said, "Thank you for saving us, Ulquiorra. Halloween would've ended without you."

Ulquiorra stared down at his feet. Even after all that he had learned and gained after getting a Keyblade, he was still uncomfortable with being thanked. Eventually, he said, "I'm not the one you should thank. Thank your hearts, for being able to remain true to yourselves even with Oogie Boogie's tampering."

Three white portals appeared, one for each Espada. Grimmjow, Starrk, and Lillynette wasted no time in walking through them. Ulquiorra was about to walk through his when the rag doll asked, "Wait! Will we see you again?"

Ulquiorra turned, delivering the second smile he ever had in his Hollow life. "Every day. You need only look in your hearts."

The plot deepens! The Hogyoku is on the move, and Organization XIII is aware of its existence! Hope you guys enjoyed this new chapter. Please review! Any and all are welcome!