He had visited the corner store enough times now for the cashier to become friendly, or at least able to speak to him without that high pitched squeak. It annoyed him a little that he had to hide among these humans. The smell alone was enough to make him sick, their souls about as appetizing as a lowly hollow. Perhaps that's why he felt the need to engorge himself so frequently. The hunger never really faded.
"T-thank you for your business! Have a nice day, sir!" The jittery cashier said as he returned more paper bills than what Grimmjow had originally given him. He didn't think too much on it. Human methods of trade were idiotic at best, but when it came down to it, how they calculated the worth of this stupid exchange wasn't worth the effort to figure out. He stuffed the money into his pocket and grabbed the bag off the counter.
"Thanks." He offered, to which the cashier bowed. He took his time getting back to the apartment, knowing full well that idiot was still blubbering. He could feel it in the way her reiatsu wavered and shrunk into her, a fine display of self-pity. He couldn't deny, however, that he had a similar reaction back in Hueco Mundo when he was left on the desert sands, an inch away from death. He should have been dead. Kurosaki should have killed him, but the bitch boy shinigami had shown him sympathy instead.
His fist tightened around the plastic handle of the bag, nearly evaporating it from existence. "Nobody takes pity on me." He declared in his mind. Back then, he had hoped for death simply because he had been beaten. He was weaker. But not anymore. After months of recovery and training, he would make Kurosaki regret not killing him when he had the chance. It was a damn shame that bastard went and lost all his powers. Now he was no stronger than a babe fresh out of the womb. That kind of fight wasn't worth his time. So for now, he had to hold up in this shithole with that nagging crybaby.
Something pricked at the back of his mind as he inwardly grimaced. It was a subtle feeling, something he could easily ignore if he wanted to, but didn't. There was something about that shinigami that drove him crazy in a good way. She was too kind hearted for her own damn good, but the way she glared at him with those purple orbs made him want to set her straight; or crooked. He laughed. She wasn't bad to look at, with the ample curvature of her breasts and ass. She was a fiery bird, too, always willing to stand up to him despite the obvious tremble in her body. He wouldn't mind fighting her...in the bedroom. Damn shame clogs had made it very clear he wasn't to touch the girl.
Without realizing it, Grimmjow had ended up back at the apartment, pushing open the door and immediately scrunching his nose at the repulsive smell of weak human blood scattered all over the place. He dropped his bag on the counter first before picking up the various clothing and tossing them in the garbage. It was then he heard her. Desperate gasps and wrenching cries lingered out from the bathroom, mingling with the sounds of crashing droplets of water.
"Tch. Still at it." He grumbled while pulling the boxes of food free from the bag. It annoyed him, her crying. But it annoyed him for all the wrong reasons and that pissed him off even more.
He found the meal he had picked for her and placed it at the table setting she usually sat at. "Maybe some of that black shit she drinks will get her to shut up." He mused as he started playing with her coffee maker. It couldn't be that hard to figure out. He'd seen her do it every morning for two weeks now.
By the time he finally got the pot brewing, her sobs had finally ceased. She had gone silent and he would have questioned if she were even still there if he didn't feel her lavender reiatsu lapping at his violent blue aura. It was longing, lonely. She was a giant ball of misery and it was getting more and more difficult for him to ignore it.
"I'm sick of this shit." He huffed. He marched over to the door and threw his fist into the wooden slab. "Oi! Hurry up! Your food is getting cold and I ain't fucking reheating it."
Shock. That was all she felt as she got up from sitting in the, once hot, stream of water. While at first she had jumped in surprise at him banging on the door, his offering of food left her completely dumbfounded. Regardless, she finished up and snuck her way to her bedroom to get dressed.
"Where are my scrubs?" She asked upon reaching the small table where he was already nose deep in his second box of food.
"I threw them out." He said around a mouthful.
She nodded before sitting, noticing the untouched bento box and a fresh cup of coffee. "Thanks." She offered.
He grunted in response, either not accustomed to having anyone thank him or simply not caring enough.
She ate slowly, trying her best to enjoy each bite. She had gotten skilled at enjoying the little things in her life after so much was taken away. She watched the TV as she ate, or at least pretended to. She was thankful he left it on; anything to distract from having to speak to him. She could feel his eyes on her skin, the hairs on her neck standing straight.
"What happened?" He asked after he finished his second box. She had gotten about halfway through by that point.
"I really don't want to talk about it." She said quietly.
"Tch." He crossed his arms while leaning back in his chair, biting back a smart ass insult. "Fine, forget it." He got up from his seat and started heading towards the couch. He didn't have time to try and pull a self loathing idiot out of her own pit. She wanted to stay there? Then fine. He'd rather watch these human shows. At least they had something he could get into. Two humans beating the shit out of each other and the one who won was named the champion. It was no fight to the death, but it was better than some of the garbage she watched.
"A family was shot to death. The only survivor was a little girl. The mother was pregnant and the baby died with her." She said quietly and to her food. It didn't matter. He could still hear her. "The little girl was probably only three, maybe four. She lost her entire family. She lost her mother, her father, and her baby sister." She dropped her chopsticks on the table, completely losing her appetite now. "I couldn't save them."
"You can't save them all, kitten." He said nonchalantly, eyes still fixed on the TV, but completely aware of her. "No need to beat yourself up about it."
"I should have been able to save them." She declared, her fists tightening until her knuckles turned white.
"But you didn't." She turned to him, her eyes drawn into a glare. He turned to meet it, his expression uncharistically calm. "So next time do better."
Her expression changed abruptly, startled from his comment. "Do better?"
"You think I should've lived when Kurosaki beat the shit out of me? Then that bitch, Nnoitra, lapped up his seconds like a starving dog." Grimmjow spat out. "It ain't going to happen again. Assholes should have made sure I was dead. It's just a damn shame Nnoitra's already been obliterated. I would have liked to remove his head myself."
She could barely comprehend what he was saying. Was he really trying to rationalize to make her feel better?
"Point is, Ruka, sometimes we fuck up; sometimes we ain't good enough. But as long as we're alive, we better damn well get it right the next time." He turned to look at the TV again. "That's why when Kurosaki is back to his usual self, I'm going to fight him and I'm going to win. I can be patient until then."
"Why is it so important to you to be the best?" She asked suddenly.
"Because for me, that's all there is." He responded, his voice low.
"That can't be it. That can't be the only reason for living!" She urged, like she was trying to convince herself that there had to be more to her life and trying to find it in that wild blue-haired Arrancar.
He sighed. "So naive." Her eyes flickered at his comment, more pain. "I'm an Arrancar. Before that, I was an Adjunctas and before that, Gillian. Before that-"
"Hollow." She answered, her voice sad.
"My entire existence has been about fighting and winning. And if I didn't, I'd die." He answered, his expression serious, his tone hard as stone. "What else is there?"
"Friendship, love?" She offered, unsure. Two things in her life that she once had but were ripped away by the whirlwind that was Aizen.
Grimmjow snorted. "Two things that will make you dead quicker."
"Happiness?" She said it so quietly that he wouldn't have picked up on it if his ears weren't so sensitive.
"There ain't no such thing, Ruka." His tone had sobered again. He didn't look at her.
"I had it once." She answered.
He stood up and approached her. He grasped her chin roughly, coming within an inch of her. His breath was hot, scalding her lips. "And where is it now?"
She grasped his hand gently, her lack of aggression surprising him with how hard he was holding on to her. "I'm still looking."
"Yea, well let me know how that goes for you." He released her and stalked over to the kitchen, raiding the fridge for a beer.
She cleaned up her mess and worked her way over to the door, sliding on an alternate pair of shoes since her other ones had been tossed in the trash. "Where are you going?" He shouted from the couch.
"Out." She responded simply before slamming the door behind her. If she couldn't save that poor family, then she would go one step further. She'd find their souls and make sure they got to Soul Society safely. She clung to her soul candy, complimentary of Urahara, and made her way to the scene.
The place was a mess. She had switched out of her gigai a few blocks up, sending her grocery shopping, though she loathed to know what that mod soul would bring back. She couldn't worry about that now. She had to find those souls.
Police tape extended two stores. Gun shells were still scattered all over the ground, not yet cleaned up. "Who would do this?" She questioned upon seeing splatters of blood. It seems there were other victims, most likely sent to other facilities with less threatening injuries.
"Ayami!" A warped voice shouted from an alleyway. "Ayami, where are you!?" The voice was frantic.
Haruka turned the corner and saw them. The two souls stood clinging to one another, both chains broken. The woman was still very much pregnant, sobbing in her husband's arms. "Ayami…"
"She's safe." Haruka offered, causing the two souls to look up suddenly. Their expression was one of fear and uncertainty. "It's ok, I'm going to get you somewhere safe too. It's not safe here for you anymore."
"Where is Ayami?" The woman demanded.
"She's with her grandmother." Haruka answered and the two souls seemed to relax.
"How do you know?" The father stepped forward.
"I was there when you died. I saw her when…" She paused, her tone aching.
"I'm glad." The woman said. "I'm glad she's safe."
Haruka unsheathed her zanpakuto, the brand appearing on her hilt. "This will only take a moment."
"Will we ever see her again?" The mother asked as Haruka put the hilt up to her forehead.
She hesitated, knowing the truth. They wouldn't remember her. They wouldn't remember each other at all. They would find new families and new lives in Soul Society. This love, their love, was not eternal; their happiness not concrete. Despite this, Haruka nodded. "You'll see each other again." She just barely got the lie out, her throat feeling as dry as a Hueco Mundo desert.
"I'm really glad." The mother smiled before pressing her own forehead into the hilt of the blade and then her body dissipating. Haruka moved the hilt up to the father and performed the same ritual on him, his eyes closed as he accepted his fate into Soul Society.
"I'm sorry." She whispered, the ache all the more painful.
She moved out of the alleyway and ducked under the tape. "Lady-sama!" A familiar voice tugged her attention down the sidewalk. "Lady-sama!"
Haruka sighed. "It's Akiyama-sama." She corrected as her gigai reached her. She stretched one last time, enjoying the light feel of her regular body before having to return to her gigai.
The mod soul huffed and gasped, trying to catch her breath. "I-I came back!"
Haruka looked her over. "Where are the groceries?"
"I n-needed to ask you, Lady-sama," she coughed, "what brand of noodles you wanted. There were three choices."
She rolled her eyes at the gasping gigai. "This is why I don't send you food shopping. Come on, let's go home." She lifted the candy holder to the gigai, forcing her mod soul back out and allowing her to reenter.
"Well, well, well, look at who we have here." A sickly familiar voice called out.
Haruka cursed as she turned to see four shadowy individuals appearing. She recognized two of them immediately. "I'm not interested." She stated before looking for a way out. How did she not notice them?
"I don't think I'm really in the mood to negotiate, sweetheart." The short big guy who seemed to be in charge mentioned with amusement. "Grab her."
The three other men charged, causing a sneer to form on Haruka's face. She dodged the first one, sending him toppling over himself before jumping up and kicking the second one in the face. The third one managed to get his arms around her, but she sent an elbow right into his cheek, causing him to drop her. She kneed him in the stomach and sent him to the ground. Just as she was about to turn back to the leader, a sharp pain exploded from the top of her skull, shooting down to her limbs and sending her into darkness.
