Chapter Ten – What Happens in the Mansion, Stays in the Mansion (Hopefully)
I'd forgotten that I promised to walk to school with Rukia and Orihime. So, they come bursting into the mansion, and I'm asleep still with my head in Nnoi's lap, and not that I was complaining about that, but those two made such a squealing, fan-girl racket that Neliel burst out of the bathroom, dripping wet, in a towel with her sword drawn, thinking we were under attack. Orihime and Rukia were too thrilled about the scene with me and Nnoitra and both hugged me so tightly I thought my head was going to pop off. Orihime may be annoying as hell, but she's really a sweetheart. And she keeps Ulquiorra from acting like an emo vampire.
Oh, by the way, it's trend with the Espada to lick their wounds.
On our way to school, Rukia said, "You know, there is a dance on Friday! It's going to be so fun! You Espada need dates!"
Orihime piped up. "Oh, maybe Ulquiorra can go with me!"
"None of the Espada know how to dance, though. And it's not a prom, is it?" I was not going to wear a frilly, puffy, colorful dress that I would trip in. I already trip over my skirt-ribbons.
"We don't actually dance. Okay, sometimes we do," Rukia explained. "And no, it's just a formal. Nothing prissy."
I silently thanked God.
"But, we need to get Neliel, Grimmjow, Szayel, and Harribel dates." Orihime smiled. Firstly, I can only imagine Neliel in a relationship. Secondly, it'd be with Ichigo, who is taken. Thirdly – What the 'F'?
"Oh, yeah, good luck with that." I rolled my eyes.
"Well, it was just a thought."
"Oh, and Ichigo is starting a school holiday." Rukia informed. "It's 'Rebellion Day' or something stupid. The girls wear their tops unbuttoned and the guys mostly walk around with their boxers out."
"Rukia, Ichigo just wants to see your chest." I pointed out.
The black-haired Shinigami girl shrugged. "He's going to be seeing everyone's."
So, eventually, we got to school. The Espada were already informed of today's events. We were waiting outside because, even though we got up late, we were early. Don't even ask. I began unbuttoning my shirt and revealing my black lace, partially see-through bra, as well as my stomach.
"Whoa, Mia, are you a secret stripper?" Harribel raised her blonde eyebrows, then continued to reveal a less intimate, bright-ass yellow bra.
Neliel shook her head. "You two are sluts."
"Says you." I countered.
But she did continue to act like a ho with us.
Nnoitra gave me a look, gave my DD-cups a look, coughed in embarassment, and turned away. Szayel started laughing at him and fixed his glasses.
Rukia gave the guys a look. "Are you forgetting something?"
Ichigo had just caught up with us. "This is a good day." Rukia kicked him in the stomach, laughed, and walked inside. I followed. Frankly, standing outside "hanging out" like that was bothering me. When we all took our seats in class, the teacher looked rather…disturbed…by everyone's showing off.
"Button your shirts and," She stood in front of Nnoitra, "pull up your pants."
"Hell naw!" Harribel put her feet up on her desk.
"Nice panties," Keigo commented, and Harribel responded with a foot to the face.
"We could do worse," Szayel reminded her. "Our pants could be off completely."
Ulquiorra said, "Our boxers," He aimed a pasty white finger at Uryu, "or man-thongs, for example, could be off completely." Okay, yes, he did hate Uryu for breaking Orihime's heart. She giggled. She actually giggled. How ditzy.
Nnoitra proceeded with, "Mia could be in a transparent lingerie dress with nothing on underneath."
"Why is it always me?" I blurted, leaning over the desk. "You just like the thought."
"That is entirely true."
A long chorus of "Woo!" broke out around the classroom.
"Everyone has… er…" Okay, yes, she was at a loss for words here.
"Fuck you!" We Espada chorused at the same time. I opened the window. "We're out!" I stuck out my toungue and jumped out, flying back to the mansion after quickly erasing the memories of said teacher.
We were raving about that scene when we got back to the mansion. "I can't believe Mia actually said the F-word!" Grimmjow laughed as we walked into the house. I felt like I was wasted. I hadn't even drank anything, but Harribel passed around sake and said that before we played said poker game, we had to get a little wasted first. And I only had to drink half the bottle, while Harribel chugged three to get partially drunk, and everyone else had one.
"I don't understand this game!" I yelled, punching the air with both fists.
"Sake!" Harribel shouted from the other side of the table.
Grimmjow suggested that we should all fix our outfits so not to "cheat" the game.
We played for awhile before Harribel threw her shoes across the room. By now I couldn't tell if she was half-drunk or utterly wasted. "You know, we shouldn't have allowed shoes in this game," Nnoitra complained. "It'd go a lot faster."
Neliel groaned. "Oh, shut up. You just wanna knock up poor Mia."
I am always the victim. Always. There is not a day I've been alive where someone doesn't remark I'll get knocked up or wasted with Harribel or both. I slammed my head on the table.
"Sorry, Mia." Neliel patted my back.
"Harribel, save me some sake for after this game. I'm getting wasted after this." I brought my head up.
"Aww yeah!" She whooped.
We continued playing and no one made a snide little remark about my getting knocked up, which I can assure you, I was not planning on it. Geez, people. "Mia lost this round." Szayel jerked a thumb at me.
I took off my shoes. Then lost another round and ended up walking bare-footed to the bathroom. I splashed water in my face. I can't believe I let myself get caught up in this again…
Carmeltail landed on my shoulder for the first time in forever. "Hey, Mia, when you're done here, go keep a diary of some events. Recall all you can from Hueco Mundo up to this point. You might need it. You might forget everything one day." Then he faded. I'd learned the hard way not to doubt my Clan, however, and made a mental note to listen to my son.
I walked back downstairs and we continued playing. And before anyone knew it, we were all tied. In this case, we were all shirtless. And since it's tradition to throw your shirt across the table, we all had each other's clothing articles. Harribel slingshotted hers at Grimmjow, laughed, and then fell backwards in her chair.
"Fail!" Neliel and I chimmed together.
"Horribly." Harribel added as she got up.
And at the end of the game… I lost. "Yay, I don't have to show what I got to you people!" I lie my head on the table. Note to self: Stop playing strip poker.
"Dammit!" The guys chorused.
"Excuse me?"
They got up and dispersed the second I looked up. Nnoitra hooked a finger through my bra strap and snapped it against my shoulder. "Nice lingerie."
The lace slid down my arm as I stood. "It's not lingerie. What is with you people thinking I'm a whore?"
Harribel coughed. "Because you act like one?" A playful spark danced across her eyes.
I rolled my eyes and started putting back on my uniform. Probably because I didn't want to leave my gigai almost naked. "No porn in the living room!" Grimmjow called from the balcony.
"Says the number one porn watcher in the house!" Neliel challenged.
"Says the hooker who probably falls asleep with a male blowup doll!" He retorted.
"Says the man-ho who jerks off to 'Good Housekeeping'!" I had never heard such words come out of Neliel's mouth, and I had to say, I was getting a kick out of it. Harribel parted from her gigai and stretched, then began picking up the table. Strange for her, but good enough.
"Says the white-trash slut who screws Harribel with a strap on!"
Harribel snapped a corner of our fold-and-stash table, creating a rip in the table cloth. "Nuh-uh, you did not just call me a lesbian."
"That I did, gutterslut." Grimmjow was drawing a crowd. Szayel stood in his lab doorway, watching intently, while Ulqiuorra had stopped midway up the stairs. I was so distracted I didn't even button my shirt yet.
"I'm gonna kick your white-boy ass!" She drew her sword.
"Actually, that could be good." I said, recieveing weird looks from the rest of the group. "We could all use a sparring time! None of us have honned our skills recently. It's pathetic. Especially for fight-crazy Nnoitra." I laughed. "We'll have to do it outside, maybe in the skies we fought that one asshole in."
Harribel shrugged. "Good enough for me!" We all ditched our gigai and proceeded to our new training grounds.
"Okay, every man or woman for themselves!" I yelled, positioning my sword so it was in front of me. We all spread out in a vast circle, shooting glares and smirks and laughing until Neliel shouted, "Go!" and everyone went at each other.
Szayel came at me first, and I swung my sword so it came in front of my eyes within a second. Of course, we were all insanely fast, and since my original target was Ulquiorra he did catch me off guard. I kicked him back and turned to chase down my initial victim. When I clashed blades with the pale boy, I felt a shockwave, like something had just tazered me.
"Mia, your eyes!" He shouted as I stepped back and tried to regain my balance after a dizzy wave crashed over me. "They're red."
"And they're doing that ripple thing." Neliel pointed.
My eyes are weird. Usually, when I've got strong emotions, the turquiose color in my eyes begins to shift and replace small patches with light blue, and the light blue fades and moves and it's all awkward. Usually the ripples move fast when I'm upset and slow when I'm really happy and slower but brighter when I'm…passionate. My eyes only turn red when Maidaku tries to take over my body again, and it doesn't happen often. And they must be rippling because I'm trying to fight her off.
"Now one of her eyes is blue." I could barely make out Ulquiorra's voice over the pounding in my skull.
"Mia!" Maidaku cooed inside my head. "Time to visit me! I've missed you, dearie!"
I shrieked and sank to my knees when I felt a sharp pain on my arm. And, okay, it's not like a pain like that is going to cut me down. It's also the fact that I was clutching my head with a soundless scream while my eyes shook and my body convulsed once before it went black.
"Finally, you get your fat ass here." Maidaku sent me a glare. Okay, when Ameneko wasn't here, I hated her forest. Maidaku didn't have an area of her own, and I highly doubt Junsuina did either.
I stood up and coughed, trying to catch my breath from that mind-fight. Yes, it was that agonizing.
"You're my exact copy with darker colors and red eyes. You just called yourself a fat ass too." I retorted. And by the way, I am not fat. I've got big boobs and a sexier build than most women. Which means she copied me. Which means neither one of us is fat. I'm defensive, I'll admit.
"Whatever." She twirled her mace in the air, swung it at me, and one spike slightly scratched my cheek as I dodged. Great, she was trying to take over again. She brought the pitch-black weapon back to her side, stepped forward on lithe feet, and then wrapped the long chain around me. One spike embedded itself in my left thigh and I let out an agonized wail. Ameneko was still in my hands, but her power was useless here. I couldn't resurrect in her forest for some reason. I've never been able to do that; it's one of those weird things that just can't be fixed. I lifted my restrained arm and slashed at the chain, to no avail. Blood trickled down my leg and to the grass underfoot, creating a scarlet puddle. I pulled a spike off the mace and tossed it aside as I tried to pull the thing out of me. Maidaku cringed as if it was hurting her, and then I realized something: it does hurt the zanpakuto spirit when the zanpakuto is broken or chipped. It can be fixed but it still must hurt.
My evil copy yanked on the chain and it swirled around me as it retreated, giving me scrapes from the black metal. The spike imbedded in my leg tore through my muscles and sprayed blood as the thing traveled up the length of my body, unravling itself from me but creating a spiral of wounds all around. When the pain of the fresh wounds faded it was replaced by a numb feeling. Blood gathered at my feet and I could hardly move. Maidaku stepped forward and as my vission blurred and my hearing became fuzzy, I made out, "I'll…killing you…and you can't…" I felt dizzy again. She put her hand on my shoulder and opened another wound with her black painted nails, which is the one thing we didn't have in common. I don't paint my nails.
Just as my vission faded completely, I stabbed her above the chest with Ameneko and fell over, into a pool of my own blood. I barely caught, "…win…" escape her lips.