Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo. All characters in Bleach belong to Tite Kubo. Rose is my OC.
: ) I spent quiet a bit of time on this chapter. I would greatly appreciate feedback on it .I hope you all see Rose as a strong character who is not so shallow. I worked very hard on her. Thanks!
Rose : )
Bright, artificial sunshine invaded Rose's eyes, causing her to wake up.
Knowing she didn't want to miss breakfast, she got up to take a shower.
After she dried off and left the bathroom, a new uniform had 'mysteriously' appeared on her bead.
She slipped on the baggy hamaka pants, a purple tank top, and her dry purple shoes.
Rose walked over to the coffee table to check on her drawings. A few of them were still damp, and the ones that were dry were still ruined.
'Oh well…' Rose sighed.
Right before she was going to walk out the door, a pair of shiny bells glinted in the sun, catching her attention.
'My earrings! They must have fallen out of my bag!'
Rose hastily washed them off and put them on.
She jingled softly with each step.
Checking the time on her ipod, it read 9:20.
Rose grabbed her map and headed off for the kitchen.
She winded along the crisp, cold white hallways of Las Noches until the kitchen door loomed in front of her vision.
She listened closely to the muffled voices behind the door, and when they died down, Rose pushed open the doors with a light jingle, and stepped inside.
None had noticed her yet. 'Phew.' Thought Rose.
At least, not until Grimmjow greeted her.
"Hey, Birdie."
She spun around. –Jingle-
"Oh, hello."
Nnoitra snapped his head around to lock his eyes with hers.
"What the fuck is that jingling sound? It's pissing me off."
Rose flicked one of her bell earrings.
"This? It's my earrings."
A soft ring sounded through the room.
"Yeah, knock it the fuck off or I'll rip them out of your ear-OW! What the fuck, Grimmjow?"
Rose blinked.
"No. I like my earrings."
Nnoitra scowled and left the room.
"Tsk. Tha lil' bugger nevar learns, does he?"
"No, Gin-san, he doesn't."
Answered Starrk.
Rose quietly asked Grimmjow where the cheerios were, and then poured her self some with milk and honey.
"Um… Where are the spoons?"
"Third drawer to the right."
Answered Szayel.
"Thanks." Rose got a spoon and proceeded to munch down her cheerios.
"You know, this isn't half bad."
She mumbled quietly.
"What, the food? It usually is, Tia can't cook."
Rose had to bite her lip to stop from laughing when an angry woman with blond hair slapped Starrk on the head.
"I can too cook, Starrk. I just haven't practiced for a long time…"
"No, not the food. These Cheerios are the best I've ever had, but I meant… this place."
She chewed her food thoughtfully and then filled the silence.
"I mean, when you get past the fact that everything is so bland and white, it's actually kind of… pretty."
At that moment, Aizen walked into the room.
"Bland? What do you mean, Rose?"
'Uh-oh. I don't think he likes me insulting his choice of...décor.' she thought.
"W-well. It's not very… colorful."
"It's not supposed to be. White-" he gestured to the walls. "Is a very pure color. And we must be opposite to the Shinigami, of course."
She thought about this for a bit as Aizen took his seat and Gin poured him some tea.
"That's logical. But I have a question."
"Yes, Rose?"
Rose ate some more Cheerios before answering rather, erm, boldly.
"Can I paint my room?"
It was like all of the air was sucked from the room. Grimmjow Snorted, Szayel was resisting a laugh, Starrk tried not to yawn and Gin just snickered.
Aizen blinked. Never before had some one asked.
He thought about it for a bit.
"Well, what color do you want to paint it?"
He answered after much consideration.
"Pretty much all of them."
"…Oh, well-"
"Please?"
Now he was just shocked. 'Please' was not a common word here, she could tell.
"I'll… think about it."
She smiled back at him, finished her food and put her bowl in the sink.
"I'm going exploring. Bye."
"Hey, Birdie! You can't just-"
Aizen quirked a brow at this.
'Birdie... Huh, I'll have to ask him about that later.'
"Fine, if you won't let me go alone, then just come with me."
Grimmjow dumped his Juice in the sink and walked out after her.
Starrk was the first one to say it.
"Birdie…? Really?"
"Apparently, Starrk. Apparently."
Rose and Grimmjow walked down the halls, going no where important, when a blonde bullet raced down the hallway and stopped a few feet in front of Grimmjow.
"Grimmjow-Sama! Grimmjow-Sama-"
"Spit it out, Yylfordt!"
"D-Di Roy's in the medical wing!"
"So? He can take care of himself! Gods, I leave you alone for a minuet-"
"Grimmjow-sama, you don't understand! It's bad. It's really, really bad."
He raised his eyebrows, and walked off behind Yylfordt beckoning Rose to go with him.
When they reached the medical wing, Grimmjow and Yylfordt went inside. Rose tried to follow, but was Stopped by Yylfordt.
"Miss, really. You shouldn't go with us."
Rose was surprised that he was being so polite, and that he didn't even ask Grimmjow about her. She was also the tiniest bit hurt that she wasn't allowed in to see this 'Di Roy.'
The Door was left open enough so she could hear them.
As soon as Grimmjow laid eyes on Di Roy, he stopped walking and started shutting the door.
"Oh, Gods-" He turned to talk to Rose though the door.
"Birdie, you don't wanna see this. You really, really don't."
'Birdie?' thought Yylfordt.
A broken, limp body lay on a bed. He was bloody and beaten. His grey hair was clotted thick with blood, and a mask-like hat on his head was smashed on the left side.
The white Arrancar uniform was stained red in various places, ripped, and a huge gash was sliced down his right side. Di Roy was in bad shape. His breathing was labored and heavy. Purple-black bruises covered his chest, the ones that could be seen through holes in the uniform, at least.
A small Arrancar hurried out of the back room.
"Sir, I'll have to ask you to leave so I can properly heal him." There was a stern tone to her voice, but there was no doubt that she knew who she was talking to.
Grimmjow studied her.
"What's your name?"
"Kiim, Sir."
"Alright then, Kiim. You better get him in tip-top shape."
Grimmjow said, a scowl forming on his face.
"I can only do so much in a day. But he should be out of the wing in a week."
"A whole fucking WEEK?"
Kiim cringed.
"He's in bad shape, sir. Now, please go."
Grimmjow looked at Di Roy.
"You dumbass."
He muttered.
The two left the room with out any further words.
Rose hastily stepped back from the door as not to be caught listening in.
Yylfordt turned to her.
"Who are you?"
'Oh, not again.' She thought.
"M-my name is Rose."
'Rose, huh. I wonder why Grimmjow-sama called her Birdie?'
"Are you the girl Grimmjow-sama told us about after Aizen-sama?"
"Y-yes. That's me."
Yylfordt flashed her a rare smile.
"It's nice to meet you. But, I have a question."
Grimmjow looked like he was getting annoyed.
Rose paused.
"Yes?"
"Why does Grimmjow-Sama call you 'Birdie'?"
Grimmjow snorted.
"I-It's a long story-"
"That you won't be hearing, Yylfordt."
Finished Grimmjow.
This, of course, peeked Yylfordt's curiosity, but he shut his mouth, knowing not to piss off the Sexta Espada.
The three of them started walking in no particular direction, when Rose pulled out her map and made a sharp right turn down another hallway.
Grimmjows hand shot out and grabbed her shoulder, yanking her back.
"Whoa, Birdie. You can't go down there."
She rolled her eyes.
"And why not? Nothing on this map says it's restricted."
"That's 'Tres Cifras'; the 'Demoted' Espadas wing."
"And?"
He rolled his eyes.
"They've already lost their rank. Really, Aizen has nothing to use against them if they hurt you. Many of them would do it just to get killed. Without your rank; your power, you're lower than shit, here."
The fear was starting to sink back into her gut; but Rose stiffened up and walked away from the hallway.
"Whatever you say, Grimmjow-Sama."
They walked for a bit more before Rose complained of her feet hurting, so she slumped down on the floor, up against the wall.
Rose turned her head up to the ceiling, and a small gasp escaped her throat. The ceiling was supported by large pillars that ran down the sides of the walls, and on to the floor. They were wide, and perfect for climbing up. Huge planks of stone arched up on the ceiling, more like decretive architecture then actual support. It looked like a huge cathedral's ceiling.
A brilliant little idea was forming in her mind.
While Grimmjow was talking to Yylfordt, She scampered up one of the pillars. It took a few minuets, but neither one of the guys' were paying attention, so she had plenty of time.
Once she had situated her self on one of the thick arches, She called down to Grimmjow.
"Hey, Grimmjow-Sama! Look up here!"
Grimmjow instinctively snapped his head up, and his fiery blue eyes widened.
"BIRDIE, GET DOWN FROM THERE!"
'Whoa, he seems mad. And a little bit worried, but still super pissed.' She thought.
"Ha-ha, no way! I can see all the way down the hallway from here! It's so cool!"
Rose Carefully stood up and began walking along the arch to reach another one.
Her earnings Jingled lightly with every step she took.
"BIRDIE-"
"Gosh, calm down, Grimmjow-sama! I got it all under contro- OH SHIT!" She gave a high-pitched scream.
Rose's foot slipped, and she fell down on to the arch, luckily not to the floor, and nearly gave Grimmjow a heart attack.
"S-see? It's all g-good. I think I'll just crawl to the other side. I-I'm done walking."
She crawled to the opposite side of the arch and carefully shimmied down the pillar to lock eyes with a freaked-out Grimmjow.
But before he could scold her, Rose had something to say.
"Before you say anything: I'm really super sorry, I'll never do it again and Bye."
With that, Rose took off as fast as she could down the hallway.
She ran for a really long time, legs pumping, turning down random hallways and rushing past numbered doors.
She never once checked her map; big mistake.
Rose ran headlong into a tall, twiggy wall of 5th Espada.
Falling flat on her ass, she jumped up and ran the hell out of there.
But all Nnoitra had to do was follow the bells.
He chased her down hallway after hallway, until she burst through a door and into the harsh sun of The Dome.
Rose ran behind trees, in circles, and tried hiding behind huge rocks, but he always knew where she was.
Nnoitra was just messing with her.
He was stalking her like a cheetah in the grass.
Meanwhile, Grimmjow and Yylfordt were roaming around Las Noches looking for Rose.
"I'm sorry, Grimmjow-Sama. I don't know where she is."
Grimmjow growled angrily at his subordinate.
"You'd better know soon!"
Yylfordt cringed.
"Y-Yes sir."
She heard him. Rose never even had to open her eyes to know Nnoitra was there: getting closer and closer.
"Come out, come out, wherever you are… Rose."
-Jingle-
Rose held her earrings so they didn't ring anymore and trapped the air in her lungs.
She locked her eyes shut and listened. Nnoitra was too intent on finding her to notice another person's footsteps approaching.
"Yer walkin' on tha line, Nnoitra."
Nnoitra whipped his head around to see Gin standing a few feet behind him, his face twisted into that god-forsaken fox smile.
Nnoitra scowled dangerously and stalked off.
There was an air of danger around him.
Aizen would be sure to hear about this.
"C'mon out, Rosie."
Rose walked out from behind a grove of trees, her knees still visibly shaking, and took a deep breath.
Gins squinted eyes inspected her.
"He didn't do nothin', did he?"
She shook her head.
The two walked back out of the dome in silence.
"P-Please don't hold Grimmjow-san responsible for this, it was my fault I ran off." She whispered.
Gin nodded his head. He hadn't intended to, anyway.
"I wasn't checking my map. I should have but-"
Gin chuckled.
"It's okay, Rosie."
She sighed heavily.
"If you say so."
Rose thought it best for her to leave Gin at the end of the hallway, so Yylfordt could take credit for finding her.
She pleaded with Gin not to mention Nnoitra to Aizen.
"Why don't ya want me to report him?"
"If you do, he might lose his rank, right now, that seems like all he can call ownership to…"
Gin nodded and left.
After a few moments of walking, she turned a corner and nearly ran into Yylfordt, who grabbed her wrist and flash stepped the two of them to Grimmjow.
Time and space blurred with strange familiarity, and Rose felt her stomach flip-flop.
Grimmjow signaled Yylfordt to leave.
Rubbing her wrist, she prepared to be confronted with an angry Grimmjow.
He turned to face her.
"Birdie-"
"L-look, I'm really sorry, and I only ran off because I thought you were going to kick my ass, so I didn't want to make it worse but- now I've made it worse, haven't I?"
She leaned up against the wall and slouched her shoulders.
"I'm really sorry."
She waited for answer in the heavy silence.
"What happened to your wrist?"
"Oh, this?" rose held up her arm. "Yylfordt yanked on my arm to flash step me back. He's stronger than he thinks he is."
Grimmjow snorted.
"You really should have stayed in the Living world."
Rose didn't know if that was an insult or some kind of backhanded compliment.
She sighed and rolled her eyes.
Once again, comforting gap of nonexistent noise slowly descended on the two of them.
Rose flicked her earrings, sending soft ring through out the monstrous hallway.
"What was that for?"
Asked Grimmjow.
Rose shrugged her shoulders.
All of a sudden, Rose turned to Grimmjow.
"Why are you so nice to me? Only a few people here are even mildly polite, but you're actually nice."
Grimmjow thought about this.
'She's right.'
He thought. Grimmjow had been very UN-Grimmjow lately.
But there was just something about her.
After long consideration he answered Rose.
"You remind me of someone I knew a long time ago"
Rose titled her head in interest.
"How long ago?"
"A looong time ago."
"Who do I remind you of?"
"I think she was my sister."
"You think? How could you not remember if she was your sister?"
"It was a really long time ago."
Grimmjow shot her a grin.
By now, Rose just thought he was screwing with her brain, but maybe not.
This started thinking about what kind of family Grimmjow had.
'Probably a single mother of 3 girls and him. He looks like a big brother.' Thought Rose.
She giggled and shook the thoughts from her head, causing Grimmjow to look at her with question.
"What?"
"Oh, nothing."
As the two began walking again, a dark skinned man with dread locks appeared out of nowhere.
"Grimmjow, Aizen-sama calls for you at a meeting."
Grimmjow sighed.
"Right now?"
Tosen nodded.
Grimmjow looked over at Rose.
"Find something to do. And watch that map."
Rose rolled her eyes. 'Yep, definitely the older brother type.'
"How long will I have to be bored?"
"Meetings can sometimes last a few hours." Answered Tosen.
"Alright."
As the two were leavening, Grimmjow called back.
"Don't go and kill your self, Birdie."
"Okay!"
As soon as they left, Rose sighed.
'The rest of this day is going to suck.'
Rose bit her lip and decided to go back to her room for some shut-eye.
I really don't know why I gave Grimmjow a sister in this fanfic. You won't hear too much about her, but she's mentioned. I just imagined Grimmjow as the older brother type : )
See you next chapter!
Rose : )
P.s: Thank you all for all the great feedback!