Her rate of learning astonished him, though it was still just the same as teaching a child. Though he knew it would be a while before she could be ranked, he enjoyed this time they were spending together. He had already taught her how to speak again, and he taught her how to clothe herself. All in all, she wasn't doing too badly.

"Ulquiorra," she said, "Come here!"

"What is it, Hime?" He walked over to where she was sitting on a long white couch.

"What is that?" She asked as she pointed to a little lizard that had slithered in through the window.

"That?" He lifted it up and put it in front of her curious eyes, "That is a small hollow lizard that lives here in Hueco Mundo."

"He's cute!" She said as she patted his head, scaring him away and making him go back through the window from which he came.

"You sure have weird tastes," he sat down beside her with his elbows on his knees and his head on his hands, thinking deeply about everything. Orihime, being herself, though changed, noted this right away.

"What's the matter?"

He turned to looked at her, only a little shocked that she was able to read expressions that quickly. Sighing, he put a hand on her face gently, just as he had done when she was still human. It was different, he thought, the texture of her skin. She looked at him with a surprised expression. Though she was used to his touch, this one seemed different somehow. Other times were to teach her various things, like standing up on her own or dressing herself. This time, though, it was different. There was no meaning for this touch. Her eyes narrowed only fractionally.

"What are you doing, Ulquiorra," she said, no longer in a childish voice. "Do not think that you can take advantage of me because I have no recollection of my past."

"Of course, that was never my intention," he said, releasing his hand from her face and standing up. She was getting good at reading expressions again, and he didn't want her to see him upset. Quietly, he walked out of the room.

He knew he had to be prepared for this. Lately, her moods had been wavering from childish, to anger, to seriousness. Though he did not want to think of it, he knew that it could only mean two things. One, her soul was rejecting the unnatural transition from a soul to an arrancar, or two, she was going to remain this way which meant that he could never be with her again.

"No! I will not let that happen…" he said to himself as he made his way down the corridors.

{-}

Orihime was having many issues. Deep inside of her, she knew there was a side of her soul that she was not able to access. It frustrated her to no end… And Ulquiorra…she knew that he had some sort of connection to her, she could feel it in the very core of her being, but what could it be? She raised a hand to examine it. Her skin was almost the same color as his…though hers seemed more translucent in some way. Her hair was flaming red with eyes to match. She had learned so many things from Ulquiorra in the past few days, perhaps if she asked, she would get some answers as to who he was to her. She looked out at the pale moon that was ever-present in this world. He had told her of the sun, but she had never seen it before. What was it like? Was it bright like he said, was it warm or cold? She had so many questions, but they were interrupted by the sudden creak of the door.

"Well, well, would you look at this? I thought you'd be in here," came a somewhat slimy voice, there was no other way to describe it. His greasy black hair, the shape of his outfit, there was no doubt about it. The 6 espada, Nnoitra Jiruga.

"What is it that you want?" She said, standing up defensively. "I have no need for you."

"Don't get cocky, brat, just because you're close to the 4th espada!" He grabbed her by the collar. "Now, let me feel you a bit closer," her reached, with his free hand, for her thigh and grabbing it tightly.

"Don't even think about it!" She raised a leg and kicked him back. Though it had some force behind it, it only caused him to tighten his grip on her.

"Oh, a little fighter, are you?" He grinned. "I like that."

"Let me go, you pervert!" She pulled at his hands with all of her strength. "Let go!" She fought and fought until she was running out of energy.

"We could do this all night," he said. "Though I have things to do later, so let's get this started, shall we?" He pulled her closer to his body and whispered into her ear, "Be a good girl, now."

"Stop! Tsubaki!" She yelled, though she had no idea what that name had to do with anything. Suddenly, there was a burst of light from where her hair pins had been before that caused Nnoitra to fall back. "Don't you mess with me!" She put her hands in front of her, palms facing Nnoitra as a yellow orb formed in her hands. It took on the shape of a cero, though somehow it was different. When the light had dissipated, Nnoitra was free to look into the very thing that would end his life.

"Wh-what do you think you're doing? A cero won't kill me! My hierro is stronger than that!"

"I don't know what this cero is that you speak of, but this will most definitely end your pathetic existence." She let the orb that had formed in her hands go as it took on the form of something like lightning. Upon impact with the other arrancar, it had exploded, catching nearby pillars in it and disintegrating them into nothing. "I told you not to mess with me." She looked at him as the dust faded. Out of energy, she fell to the floor on her side. She needed to rest.

{-}

Her eyes opened slowly, taking some time to focus on her surroundings. The room was in perfect condition, but hadn't she blown everything up? Was it all just a dream? She sat up to find that a blanket had been placed around her. Looking over to the doorway, she saw Ulquiorra standing there.

"Ulquiorra…" she said as he turned to see her.

"You're awake," he walked over to her. "I'm amazed you can move with the amount of spiritual energy you used up there. You must learn to control it."

"I…I'm sorry…I just…" She reached, subconsciously, to her temples where her clips had been. "He tried to hurt me."

"Nnoitra. I noticed the disappearance of his spiritual energy just as I had felt a new one. You amaze me, Hime."

"Why do you keep calling me that? I though my name was Orihime."

"You remembered your real name?" He looked at her surprised. "What else do you remember?"

"Nothing…but before I killed Nnoitra…I yelled out the name 'Tsubaki,' and I keep having this nagging feeling that I'm forgetting something."

He reached deep into his pocket as he sat by her. "Here, these were yours." He uncurled his hand to reveal two flower clips.

"These are…" she took the clips into her hands and then put them in her hair. "They seem familiar."

"Enough of this, though, Lord Aizen would like to have a word with you," he said, standing up. "He would like to get your point of view on what happened with Nnoitra. Come on, I'll take you to him."

She took his outstretched hand as she stood up nervously. This would be the first time since she was "created" that she would see Aizen. Was he angry that one of the Espada were killed by a new arrancar who didn't even acquire a rank yet? She remained nervous the whole way to Aizen's chamber. When the two had entered and saw Aizen sitting on his throne, they both bowed immediately.

"Orihime," Aizen stated with a smirk. "I would like to talk to you about what your ranking will be."